BattleTech Lore: House Kurita

On September 9 2796, Coordinator Jinjiro Kurita, consumed with bloodlust, ordered his troops to slaughter the citizens of Kentares IV to the last man...

And Kurita became the most feared name in the Inner Sphere.

To control his people, the Coordinator of the Draconis Combine must control their ideology. Thus, Draconis society's values are Harmony and Purity—Harmony with the interests and intentions of the Kurita state, and Purity from any thoughts that contradict those of the Coordinator.

Only the powerful, mystical society ComStar could compile this sourcebook on House Kurita and the Draconis Combine. Dozens of full-color illustrations depict famous personalities, scenes, and military ranks, decorations, and insignia. Also included is Kurita history, from Shiro Kurita's bloody conquests while forging the Draconis Combine to Takashi Kurita's ruthless "Justice." Every Combine 'Mech regiment from Rasalhague to Luthien is listed, along with the totalitarian government's structure, a description of the ISF (the Combine's secret police), and excerpts from the Dictum Honorium, which spells out the codes of conduct for Kurita citizens.

Threatening to devour both the Federated Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth, the Dragon grows stronger and more fearsome. Every year brings the Draconis Combine closer to fulfilling its destiny of conquering the Inner Sphere.

Credits

Writing
Boy F. Peterson, Jr.
Tara Gallagher
Todd Huettel
Donna Ippolito
John Theisen
Robt. Wells

Editorial Staff
Editor-in-Chief
L. Ross Babcock III
Senior Editor
Donna Ippolito
Editorial Assistant
Todd Huettel
Tara Gallagher
Robt. Wells

Production Staff
Production Manager
Jordan K. Weisman
Tara Gallagher
Art Director
Dana Knutson
Uniform Design and Illustration
David R. Dietrick
Color Illustration
Jim Holloway
Todd F. Marsh
Cover Art
Dana Knutson
Illustration
Jeff Laubenstein
Todd F. Marsh
Tim Bradstreet
Dana Knutson
Tara Gallagher
Typesetting and Layout
Tara Gallagher
Pasteup
Todd F. Marsh
Dana Knutson

Publisher:
FASA

Product Code:
1620

Published:
1987

ISBN-10:
1555600396

ISBN-13:
978-1555600396

Preface

The Draconis Combine is the warlike Successor State located in the northeast quadrant of the Inner Sphere. The history of the region is a long and bloody one, dating back even before the formation of the Combine in 2319. From all apparent indications, the violence of this House will continue into the future.

From the time of the Combine's founding, its leaders have believed themselves destined to conquer all of Human space, a goal still to be achieved some 700+ years and three Succession Wars later. Bordered by House Davion’s Federated Suns on one side, House Steiner’s Lyran Commonwealth on the other, and no man’s land of the Periphery on the third, the Draconis Combine is surrounded by hostile forces. Until now, however, the balance of power among the rival Successor Houses has tipped in favor of one over the other. With the recent Steiner-Davion alliance, it may be that House Kurita has missed its chance at seizing dominion. The Steiner wealth, combined with Davion’s military prowess, may be too potent a combination even for the Kuritans’ fanatic devotion to their cult of the Dragon. Those who consult this work may judge for themselves.

This volume is one in a series of studies of the live Successor Houses of the Inner Sphere. The series was commissioned by the First Circuit to give the members of our Blessed Order insight into the workings of the five realms. Though many observers believe that the Combine has missed its chance at conquest over all humanity, ComStar must remain ever vigilant If the ruthless leaders of House Kurita were to achieve their goal, they would certainly attempt to extend their domination to our own Blessed Order.

This history has been compiled from many sources, including old and rare documents whose existence is known only to ComStar. As these materials were written, interpreted, or pieced together by various past and present authors and ComStar researchers, there may be minor inconsistencies or ambiguities that simply could not be resolved. ComStar has made every effort to verify the accuracy of all material included here, making this volume the only complete reference work available on the Draconis Combine. Indeed, not even the Combine's own historians or archivists could have pieced together a study as exhaustive as this one made possible by ComStar's resources.

In this volume, we trace the history of House Kurita from the 24th century to the present, with additional pertinent background dating as far back as the late 2oth century. There is also full information on the economic, political, military, social, and cultural aspects of life under the rule of the Dragon. Though it is not possible to typify the lifestyle of each ordinary citizen in such a vast interstellar realm, we have been able to identity the cultural myths that bind the pubic to their govemment and to describe the institutions that shape the average Kuritan's daily life. There are also briefings on key worlds and key personaities of the current era.

—From Gillian Sorenson-Hague, ComStar Archives, Terra

History

INTRODUCTION

History shows no force so strong, no statement so persuasive, as a people’s belief that they are the best, that they are destiny’s progeny, and the chosen rulers of mankind. They fall for it every time.

—From In the Belly of the Dragon: My Service in the Draconis Combine, by Ambassador Cari Glessen, Lyran Commonwealth Historical Press, 2928


The Draconis Combine was founded in 2319 by Shiro Kurita, who used persuasive statesmanship, treachery, and bloody military conquest to forge it almost from nothing.

Raised in a military and social tradition dating back more than six centuries, Shiro embraced and embodied the "way of the warrior." Through the forcefulness of his personality, he first managed to become leader of New Samarkand and then went on to form a group of petty kings and lords into the Galedon Alliance. This Alliance, created to oppose the great Ozawa Mercantile alliance, was his starting point for the military conquest of dozens more planets. By 2319, Shiro Kurita controlled a domain stretching from the border of the Federated Suns to the Principality of Rasalhague, a realm he renamed the Draconis Combine.

Shiro Kurita’s legacy continues to this day, in both the devotion to the way of the warrior and in the belief that House Kurita will one day reign over all inhabited space. The Draconis Combine's combination of an all-pervasive military tradition and a self-reliance easily mistaken for xenophobia contributes to the constant belligerence of past and present Kurita leaders.

The most obvious legacy of Shiro Kuita is the Kurita family dynasty. The Draconis Combine could not have summoned such single-minded devotion from its people without the focus of Kurita leadership. Only the existence of an all-powerful Coordinator has been able to mobilize such often-fanatic military determination from its troops.

More than in any other Successor State, the history of the Draconis Combine has a continuous tone and theme to it The names may change, the tactics and internal organization may change, but the Kurita dynasty continues to covet universal domination just as its founder did some 700 years ago.

Early Kurita

The family name of Kurita existed for centuries before one Shiro Kurita managed to forge several principalities into the Draconis Combine. The following excerpt from a 24th-century fictional videodrama is loosely based on the life of Takeo Kurita, a Japanese admiral during the Second Terran World War of the mid-20th century. Though it is likely that certain historical facts have been altered or lost in the dramatization, we do learn something about Kurita ancestry.

THE RIGHT MOMENT

Scene I
SETTING: The flag bridge of the IJS Yamato, near Samar Island, The Philippines. Gathered there are Admiral Takeo Kurita, Flag Captain Sobu Kuna, and several officers.
TIME: Dawn, 25 October 1944
KURITA: Gentlemen, it has been a long and most unsatisfying war, but I see an opportunity to seize a valuable victory.
KUNA: Then we shall continue to press the attack. I shall ring up the engine room and order more speed, if possible.
(Just then the WIRELESS OPERATOR bursts into the room and remains at salute.)
KURITA (annoyed): Yes what is it?
OPERATOR: Excuse me, your Admiralty, but I have just received word from Northern and Central Forces. I thought you would wish to know immediately.
KURITA: Has it been decoded?
OPERATOR (handing papers to Kurita): Yes, your Admiralty. They are ready for your examination. (Pause.)
Will there be any response?
KURITA (hunching down): No.
(OPERATOR salutes and exits.)
KURITA (muttering): I thought the worst had come with the sinking of Musashi. I see I was mistaken. (Straightening up, he speaks aloud in a normal tone) Gentlemen, the Northern Force under Admiral Ozawa has been destroyed; all carriers lost. Ozawa’s defeat has left a stain on my own honor, and one I hope to live down. (He brightens visibly then.) There is some good news, however. Nishimura’s fleet has doubled back and now threatens the entire American invasion force in the Gulf of Leyte.
KUNA: Then we still advance?
KURITA: We advance!

Scene II
SETTING: Takeo Kurita is alone now on the flag bridge.
TIME: Late morning.
KURITA (speaking thoughtfully to himself): We have finished losing the war that we began to lose nearly two years ago. After being shelled for several hours, the Americans have lost a small carrier, a few escorts. What of it? They have dozens more to replace them. We have lost three cruisers that we could ill afford to sacrifice. We could press on, but to what avail?
No, they are no fools, these Americans-Halsey and Sprague and Kinkaid. They would never, never leave such valuable ships as a target unless they hoped to use them as bait to trap what is left of my command. Though my head tells me to fight to the death on the high seas, my heart tells me to withdraw in hopes of meeting them another day. I would rather lose face now while there is still a chance to retreat than suffer the ignominious defeat that came to Jisaburo Ozawa.
KUNA (enters): Admiral.
KURITA (subdued): Sobu.
KUNA: You wish to change our course? Don't you intend to pursue?
KURITA (croaks): No, I have something else in mind. Set course for three-five-five. Flank speed.
KUNA (shocked): Three-five-that will take us right back through the Strait, Admiral!
KURITA: I know. We are going home, if we can survive that long.
KUNA: May I ask the reason?
KURITA: I owe the men one last look at Fujiyama, one last cherry blossom, one last walk along the seashore. l have had enough of death and destruction, especially if it is to be our own.
KUNA: But Admiral! A force of small carriers lies before us, nearly untouched and practically without escort. Surely we could obliterate them before moving off?
KURITA (sadly): The Americans have fooled you, have they? Well, they nearly fooled me as well. No, we must withdraw immediately. Perhaps, when the moment is right, we shall strike again, but we must wait for that moment. In the meantime, change course for Yokohama.
KUNA: It shall be done. (He turns to leave.)
KURITA: And Sobu?
KUNA (turns back): Yes, Admiral?
KURlTA: You might wish to light a prayer candle. It cannot hurt.
(CURTAIN)

—From Hell in High Water: A Dramatic Re-Creation in Five Acts, by Marsalis Coye, produced by the Stellar Lights Theatrical Troupe, 3012

Kearny And F u c h i d a

Every ComStar Adept learns of the relationship between technology and history. It is now clear that certain advances in technology often create events that may alter the future of the entire galaxy. A discovery that occurred millennia ago might only now begin to have its full impact. This complex, yet fascinating, correlation is one of the most important "inner mysteries" known to ComStar. The 21st century, in particular, was filled with the seeds of many of these race-changing events.

In August of 2014, an unmarried professor of theoretical mathematics named Takayoshi F u c h i d a left Kyoto University in Japan to pursue a five-year research assignment at Stanford University in the United States of America. Once there, he would join forces with Thomas Kearny and the California Research/Design Team, a multi-university cooperative think-tank. Their joint assignment was to develop solutions to some of the problems that hindered the still-unfinished fusion reactor. Kearny, himself an applied physicist and nuclear engineer, looked forward to meeting the world-renowned F u c h i d a. As it turned out, the two developed a working rapport almost immediately.

Work progressed for almost four years, and the two scientists (with generous assistance from other members of the CRDT) were able to solve all technical problems related to the fusion reactor. When a working prototype was ready in June 2018, a team of Harvard-MIT engineers took over. By 2020, the first full-scale reactor had been completed.

Meanwhile, Kearny and F u c h i d a made an unexpected discovery in late July 2018. While studying the data of one of their tests, the two researchers noticed a slight anomaly in the prototype reactor's reading. Though both men rechecked their work for fundamental errors, they found none. The fusion reactor was simply not operating in accordance with Einstein's theories, now universally accepted as valid. Using the university’s fully equipped nuclear physics lab, including the newly completed "quarkatron" accelerator, Kearny and F u c h i d a began an unauthorized and unanticipated series of experiments. These dealt with the "true" and "relative" velocities of certain subatomic particles under various states of excitation.

Kearny and F u c h i d a were shocked and excited by their findings. Using immense power from a fusion reactor to create a certain energy state, it appeared to be theoretically possible for an object possessing mass to exceed the speed of light. Unfortunately for their experiments, even the most powerful reactors in operation generated insufficient power to validate the Kearny/F u c h i d a hypothesis. It would also have been politically and economically inexpedient to use several less-powerful generating systems to accomplish the same task. Several earnest attempts to produce the required energy met with complete failure. The two men nevertheless decided to hastily co-author a series of papers that outlined their recent work and the conclusions they drew from it.

The first articles, published in the Fall 2018 issue of the Western Alliance Journal of Theoretical Physics, were an objective report of observed facts. When the only response was minor-and scornful at that-Kearny and F u c h i d a began to take a more aggressive tone as they confirmed to publish articles. When they began to directly challenge the Einsteinian concept of General Relativity, it did not further endear them to their contemporaries. Though both scientists had previously solid reputations, and despite their work on the fusion reactor, they soon became known as a pair of crackpots. The credit for fusion reactor design went instead to the Harvard-MIT engineers and to General Motors, who patented the design.

Meanwhile, Takayoshi F u c h i d a had made another, more personal discovery. While working at Stanford, he met Katherine Kurita, an American-born research technician of Japanese descent. She was both lovely and 20 years his junior, as well as the great great grand-niece of Japanese Admiral Takeo Kurita.

In the course of their work together on various projects, Takayoshi and Katherine eventually fell in love. It happened that her family still had influential political friends in Japan, which they used to have Takayoshi's five-year American assignment renewed in 2019. In Spring 2021, the lovers were
married.

By 2024, all of Kearny and F u c h i d a’s papers had been published and critically attacked, leaving the two men’s reputations destroyed and their academic credentials revoked. A broken man, F u c h i d a returned to Japan with his wife, where they opened a small origami shop. Having lost any hope of ever working again as university professor, Kearny eventually found employment as a cook. F u c h i d a died in 2038 from heart failure, and Thomas Kearny died in 2047 from food poisoning. Their passing went unnoticed, and their great contributions to science lay dormant for more than 80 years.

Politics And Technology

As late 20th- and early 21st-century technology continued to improve and expand on 5,000 years of inventions, certain political trends also became clear. With the advance of technology, the gap between the "haves" and "have-nots" also widened, particularly in the Soviet Union of the early 21st century.

By the year 2005, the Soviets were unofficially admitting that their socioeconomic adaptation of Marxism-Leninism had failed. They had made subtle efforts to introduce selected concepts of capitalism into their political system, but these changes were too slow in coming and too restricted in their application. The only ones to benefit from the few slight improvements in the economy were a fortunate handful of government officials at the top of the pervasive but unacknowledged oligarchy.

Besides, demographic, cultural, and religious pressures had been building inexorably in the Soviet Union for the previous four decades. Various ethnic and religious factions among the Soviet population had decided that peaceful attempts to resolve their grievances no longer sufficed. When a Moslem fanatic assassinated Premier Oleg Tikonov in January 2011, the act ignited an internal political struggle among the Soviets, just as the murder of Archduke Ferdinand in 1914 had led to a world war. Once all parties had declared their alignments, a bloody civil war began in earnest. It lasted three years, leaving in its wake at least 15 million Soviet citizens dead, with millions more injured. Only speedy intervention by Western forces prevented a full-scale nuclear exchange.

After the Second Soviet Civil War of 2011-2014 (the first having taken place almost exactly a century earlier), the Western Alliance emerged as the undisputed political and military power on Terra. With its position strong and secure, the Alliance and its Parliament decided to adopt a benevolent role that would “aid its citizens and improve the quality of all life on the planet.” This included strongly encouraging member-states and private corporations to engage in non-military scientific research and space exploration. Indeed, the Western Alliance was the first government to ever actively pursue those objectives as its highest priority.

The next 90 years led to myriad technological achievements. These included a permanent lunar settlement; manned space missions to Mars and the asteroid belts; practical, on-site fusion power plants; an interplanetary fusion drive; orbital shipyards; full-scale asteroid mining; and interstellar (but slower-than-light) probes. Also, developed during this period were bioelectrical polyacetate myomer fibers, though they had no immediate practical application.

These developments did have their price, however. The amount of capital that the government and corporations were devoting to scientific and technological projects increased almost geometrically. At the same time, the standard of living for the average individual also improved, but only slightly in comparison. Many civilians began to grumble that the government was pouring far too much money into pure (and to them, useless) endeavors that did not improve the quality of their own lives one whit.

The first clear indication that the Terran Alliance (as it was called after 2086) was in jeopardy came in July 2098. When a group of Brazilian semiconductor factory workers began a revolt overworking conditions, it sparked a general riot in Sao Paulo and several other major Brazilian cities. These workers felt that the 35-hour work week constituted "a condition of slavery," especially when compared to the 30-hour work week enjoyed by many other industries at that time.

Matters soon escalated beyond the local authority's ability to control the situation. By the strike's third week, production of certain critically important components had ceased throughout much of Brazil. The Alliance reluctantly sent in two divisions of paracavalry, under the command of Major General Leonard McKenna, to resolve the situation. This marked the first divisional-scale deployment of Alliance military forces since the Second Soviet Civil War.

It was fortunate that the Brazil riots did not result in the loss of many lives, but the crisis marked a dangerous trend. Once more, the "haves" and "have-nots" were in violent dispute. Indeed, this problem would carry over into the next century, with implications reaching even further into the future.

Incidentally, Takeo F u c h i d a, grandson of Takayoshi F u c h i d a and Katherine Kurita, was a Lieutenant Colonel and Battalion Commander in one of the paracavalry divisions sent to Brazil. After the engagement, Colonel F u c h i d a was commanded for his bravery under hazardous conditions, but disciplined for "use of excessive force against unarmed civilians." With this, we see the emergence of another ominous tendency that would echo down through time.

Exodus

Before the formation of the Draconis Combine, chaos reigned as Man drifted aimlessly among the stars. It took the inspired hand of Shiro Kurita, First Lord and Citizen, to forge a dynamic and noble path from which we still derive strength and to which we must still pledge obeisance.

—From Observations of Greatness, by Subhash Indrahar, Red Dragon Press, 3021


Mankind had always dreamed of reaching for the stars, though the vastness of interstellar space had made that dream seem impossible. Only a few visionary scientists, hard-core romantics, and science-fiction fanatics continued to believe that somehow, some way, someday, man would discover the means to travel to another world revolving about another star.

On May 25, 2102 (within 24 hours of each other), two teams of research scientists-one from the University of Auckland, and the other from the University of Ottawa-made nearly simultaneous announcements. (Neither team knew of the other's efforts, a coincidence that seems to occur only in high science and pulp novels.) They announced an unexpected breakthrough in Einstein ian physics. Through study of the Kearny/F u c h i d a experiments of almost a century before, it seemed possible to create a hyperspatial field around an object possessing mass, which would permit that object to travel instantaneously to a distant location.

In an uncharacteristic show of scientific camaraderie, both teams credited their discoveries to the two long-forgotten scientists whose brilliance had led the way. Scientists of both universities immediately decided to combine their efforts.

During the summer of 2102, researchers continued to evaluate the discovery of hyperspace, while staff experts went to work writing a formal request to the Terran Alliance for an override funding grant. By September, the scientists felt confident enough of their findings to submit the proposal. Thus was laid the groundwork for the development of the Kearny-F u c h i d a FTL drive.

The Terran Parliament debated and argued the issue for 14 months. Proponents of both sides were vehement in their positions. They often walked out of sessions, swearing never to return, only to do so a few days later. Pro-FTL advocates voiced the optimistic belief that exploring and utilizing the resources of an entire galaxy would relieve the pressures of overpopulation on Terra. Protestors included environmentalists who feared that mankind would now begin to despoil on a larger-than-ever scale. The anti-FTL movement also included representatives of poorer nations, who resented the cost of FTL research while the living conditions of their constituents were still inadequate. In November 2103, funding was finally approved by a very slim majority of three votes.

The project, now known as the Deimos Project, had a single objective: to develop an FTL drive that worked. It was the most expensive project ever undertaken up to that time. Expenses for the first year alone totaled over 400 billion credits, a huge slice of the entire gross world product. To compensate, the Parliament raised taxes dramatically throughout the Terran Alliance (now consisting of virtually every nation on the globe) on a per-capita basis. Such a system meant that the least-developed nations with the highest populations had to pay an inordinate proportion of the new tax, while richer, less populous nations got off more easily.

Resentment grew as more and more nations found themselves unable to afford their contribution to the Deimos Project. In July 2105, numerous riots broke out around the world, from Sao Paulo, Mexico City, and Bogotá to Nairobi, Cape Town, Addis Ababa, and Nueva Ciudad. In less than four months, half of South America and Africa was under a state of martial law, with several corps of Alliance troops on patrol to maintain a modicum of control.

At the same time, member-nations began filing notices of secession from the Terran Alliance. This finally forced the Parliament to change its taxation method for funding the Deimos Project to a straight percentage based on individual member-nation affluence. It was too late, for the harm had already been done. More than 3 million civilians and at least 70,000 Alliance soldiers were killed or wounded in the so-called Deimos Tax Rebellion, and more than two dozen nations actually did secede from the Terran Alliance. From this time on, the growing rift created between the “haves” and “have-nots” would haunt the Alliance.

Fortunately, the Deimos Project was successful. Regardless of the total cost or any individual’s political view of the matter, before long no one on Terra could now deny the truth: the discovery and use of FTL travel would revolutionize the course of civilization as much as had the discovery and first uses of fire in the pre-dawn of history.

FTL Ship Exceeds Expectations

It’s green... and it’s beautiful! Look at that beautiful little world orbiting its own beautiful sun!

Thirty seconds ago, no, wait a minute—the ship’s chronometer doesn’t show any time lapse.

Zero time? Is that—I mean, that’s what some of the scientists told us to expect. Still, they’re not here and we are. Wherever we are.

Well, it felt like 30 seconds ago, to my biological clock if to no other. Engineer Land set the hyperspace field generator for one second, and aligned the field for right ascension, declination, and distance. Then he snapped the relay.

Very little happened, except that the ship seemed to shudder minutely. We were forewarned about that, too. But no one told me to expect this brief, strange sensation of wrenching nausea. It’s almost as if the outside of my body had weight but my insides were completely weightless and trying to drift loose. Or like my body was trying to turn itself inside out, or something. The feeling doesn’t last long, fortunately, and there are no lingering after-effects. The accompanying jolt of adrenaline sure comes as a surprise.

I am very glad we brought along the spectrum analyzer and computerized spectrograms of all stars within 50 light years of Sol. Otherwise, we might have had a real chore in figuring out where we are go—I mean, where we are.

Hmm. The first rule of order is to grab some protective goggles and take a quick look at the ex-cams. Only one blindingly bright spot in the sky, with a negative visual magnitude I’d estimate in the minus 20s. Wherever we are, it is definitely not a binary or multiple-star system. Working in silence, I quickly aim the ‘lyzer at the sun, wait 15 seconds, watch the four-laser color printout, and voila! We are in the presence of a G8V spectral class star.

We have, indeed, traveled to another star, and are the first men and women to ever see its light at close range.

A G8 main-sequence is a fairly rare class of star. There are less than a dozen within half-a-hundred light years of our home sun. This is making it unexpectedly convenient for me. I run a quick comparative analysis on the ‘comp, and it confirms that we are in the Tau Ceti system—just as we had hoped, planned, dreamed! I re-aim the scope up a little and to the right (where is up and right from here, anyway?) and run another analysis. Merry old Sol, right where it’s supposed to be. Incredible as it seems, we really have traveled 3.46 parsecs in no time at all!

Observing the orbiting planet, I note that it appears to be just a touch smaller than Earth. It is also a little closer to Tau Ceti than Earth is to Sol, say around 0.8 AU, which would be just about perfect. It’s a little higher on the ecliptic plane than I had expected. (Another detail that depends entirely upon one’s frame of reference.) Looks like it might be the fourth in position. The planets are really bunched up around this star.

It’s a little soon to tell, but my first guess is that it may be square in the middle of Tau Ceti’s life zone. It does have continental land masses, and could those be-bodies of liquid water? Yes, the albedo is right, absorption lines, hmm... everything seems to check out. If it is habitable, we’ve got to call this planet “New Earth.” Maybe it means our race is going to get a second chance. Oh, brave new world that looks so much like home!

—From Transcription of Official Spaceship Log, TAS Pathfinder, 5 December 2108, Captain Norm McKenna, Commander/Astrogator. Courtesy of ComStar Archives

Colonizing Space

The Kearny-F u c h i d a hyperspatial drive is a scientific hoax. The concept of going from one star to another in a nanosecond is not science... it’s a bloomin’ Grade-A religious-type miracle, and I, for one, am gonna treat it as such!

—From Wisdom from The Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Spheres Publications, 2821


The successful round-trip voyage of the Terran Alliance Spaceship Pathfinder proved two important points. Other Terran-like planets did exist around nearby stars, and mankind now had the means to reach them. Tooled up for the new technology by June 2109, Alliance shipyards began producing exploration vessels and colony ships equipped with the new Kearny-F u c h i d a FTL drive. Government factories in the United States of North America, the United States of Europe, and the Nippon Confederation led the way, but several corporate coalitions also expressed some interest.

As quickly as the starships were being built and given cursory trials, they were sent out to explore and colonize. Though FTL movement was literally instantaneous, it took time to travel to and from the jump points. Even so, a well-trained crew surveying spectral Class M stars could manage about two per week, their endurance limited only by the amount of reaction fuel and supplies aboard.

Exactly three years (by Terran reckoning) after the Pathfinder’s first visit to Tau Ceti, a scientific outpost was established on New Earth. Back on “Old Earth,” engineers continued their efforts to lower the costs of the FTL propulsion system. Though technicians had not yet discovered any innovations for mass-production, they remained undaunted.

Meanwhile, most of the stars within 40 light years of Terra had been, or were being, explored. As expected, few Class M red dwarfs possessed planets, and few planets near Class 0, B, or A giants would be tolerable for Humans. Fortunately, there was a smattering of Class F, G, and K stars and an unexpectedly high percentage of colonizable (though scarcely perfect) worlds.

On March 8, 2116, New Earth became the first interstellar colony under the control and authority of the Terran Alliance. Elaborate ceremonies, filled with pomp and high-sounding speeches, took place on both Earths. Though the event went routinely for most citizens, it served to sharpen the resentment of certain political groups. There were a few arrests after protestors marched on the Alliance capital buildings in Geneva. “The Alliance holds out its noose for the necks of the less fortunate,” their placards read. Twenty-four hours later, the government released the marchers in a rare moment of bureaucratic compassion, and the issue was closed. Or so the Terran Alliance thought.

By 2123, the diligent work of propulsion engineers paid off. The cost of the Kearny-F u c h i d a drive had been reduced by a factor of roughly 100, thus bringing down the production price of FTL vessels to levels that corporations and other private concerns could afford.

Free enterprise now entered the interstellar market, with commercial shipyards building starships for commercial users. Because the K-F drive had been developed under a government program, no one could patent its principles and hardware, which gave access to anyone who wanted the information. For about five years, work continued at the kind of feverish pitch possible only in an unrestricted capitalistic market.

In April 2128, however, freedom took a back seat to political expediency. The Bolivar Foundation, a private political organization, purchased a colony ship from the McDonnell/Lockheed shipyard. Naming it the Liberator, the Foundation selected volunteers from Spain and South America, who would travel aboard ship to colonize a new world. On 26 S April, the Foundation’s ship reached the jump point, sent one last message back to Terra, and then vanished. The Liberator was never heard from again.

Colonization Law Passes

In a surprise move, the Terran Parliament narrowly passed a bill to severely restrict interstellar colonization and non-governmental uses of the new Kearny-F u c h i d a interstellar drive. Sources in Geneva report that voting was extremely close, but have not released the exact vote count. Copies of this new law are not yet public, either, but it is believed to contain the following provisions:

1: All extra-solar colonization fails under the sole authority of the Terran Alliance’s Foreign Ministry. Colonization within the solar system is not affected.

2: All colony ships, regardless of origin or manufacturer, must register with the Terran Alliance, and be equipped with an identification transponder. This ID beacon continuously broadcasts a unique message to identify each ship.

3: No person whose name appears on a composite list of known subversives may book passage aboard a colony ship unless he has obtained a special governmental waiver.

4: An armed ship of the Terran Alliance will escort every colony ship departing from Terra.

5: All colonies settled by citizens of the Terran Alliance automatically become part of the Terran Alliance and its jurisdiction. An Alliance-appointed governor will rule each colony, with authority to use force if necessary.

6: These provisions take effect immediately.

A spokesman for the Alliance candidly admitted that “this should bring an end to all them [sic] troublemakers runnin’ off in all directions.” The same spokesman refused to be named for the record.

—From Washington Post-Times, 25 May 2128

Water Shortage

In spite of the Terran Alliance’s strict new laws on colonization, interstellar growth continued at a remarkable rate. The government, as well as commercial and private groups, and organized colonizing expeditions. Acquiring a ship was only the first step, however, for colonists had to be selected, trained, and prepared for their ordeal. Good physical and mental health and knowledge of fundamental skills such as mechanical engineering, agriculture, and planetology were vital.

Progress came so quickly that an average two new planets a year were being colonized. “For the first time,” said one contemporary author, “mankind could quench its incredible thirst for adventure among the stars.”

More than a few colony ships were lost to human error, equipment failure, or other unknown (presumably horrible) fate. The greatest problem, however, was a lack of potable water on the new space colonies. Before the Pathfinder’s historic voyage astrophysicists believed that very few planets would be capable of sustaining Human life. To their chagrin and the surprise of almost everyone else, literally hundreds of planets existed within acceptable gravitational atmospheric, climatic, and radiation limits. What many of these worlds did not possess was an adequate supply of water suitable for drinking, manufacturing, or agriculture.

Biological toxins, light and heavy metals, soluble radioactives, and other poisonous substances permeated large bodies of water on many distant, but otherwise hospitable worlds. On some worlds, limited supplies of fresh water often became so polluted by industry, agriculture, and sewage, that it was no longer fit for Human use. Many colonists learned this lesson the hard way when their water supply ran out and they died from dehydration or from the toxins in the local supply. Other worlds, perfectly suitable except for a lack of water, remained undeveloped and uninhabited.

Water purification equipment, though available, was bulky, massive, expensive, difficult to maintain, and generally impractical for colony worlds. Fortunately for the cause of space development, Rudolph Ryan invented a solution in 2177. Within months, a second boom in colonization began. Everyone now agreed that the galaxy was the limit.

Ryan Announces Innovative Water Transport

I called this little get-together because I have some pretty important things to say. I do have a prepared statement to read first. I hope to answer all questions at the end of the session; please hold them until then. If I tell you anything you already know, bear with me. I’d rather make my point and insult your intelligence than wind up talking to myself. [Laughter.]

The last few years have been important ones for all of us, though they might not have seemed that way. In only a few short decades, man has been able to colonize several dozen planets. Maybe it’s getting to be old hat now. Ho hum. Another world populated. That’s nice. What’s new in the sports playoffs? [Laughter.]

Perhaps we are spoiled. We need to be reminded that for millennia upon millennia, mankind only had one world: Earth. I don’t think any of us were even around when the Pathfinder traveled to Tau Ceti and orbited New Earth for the very first time. No one among you gathered here today can remember when Humankind was not venturing among the stars. Oh sure, there were problems occasionally, but we could and would persevere.

Provided we had something to drink. [Lifts up glass of water and drinks from it.] Water. Nothing but a little hydrogen and oxygen mixed up in a liquid arrangement of molecules. Plus, of course, any extra additives we Humans seem to put into everything. [Laughter.] Just water.

Humans, consisting of about two-thirds water by weight, can go weeks without food, but only a few days without water. We need a minimum of two quarts per day to enjoy good health, and it doesn’t matter whether the water comes in the food we eat or in liquid form. I might add, death by dehydration is an extremely unpleasant way to go, or so I’ve been told.

Even so, only a small fraction of total water usage goes for personal consumption. Much more is used for agriculture and hydroculture. Finally, industry uses tremendous quantities in the manufacturing process, particularly heavy industry. It can take as much as 240 tons of water to make just one ton of medium-grade steel.

Yet water-pure, clean, potable water suitable for running a factory, irrigating a crop, or cooling the throat of a young and thirsty child-is hard to find out there. [Points up.] Though not unique in its habitability, our Terra is more blessed than we ever realized, with its oceans of drinkable, easily-distilled water.

During the late 20th and early 21st centuries, scientists discovered the first practical process for the bulk purification of seawater. The equipment was quite expensive and used enormous amounts of electricity. It was also large, fairly complex technically, and its filtration system required constant attention. All in all, it was barely cost-effective.

Still, the need was vital in certain parts of the world, and the process did provide a necessity of life: clean water. Later improvements allowed the removal of more than just chloride compounds. We could now remove certain metals, foreign particles, and other undesirable elements, leaving drinking water.

Of course, with the advent of interplanetary space travel during the middle of the last century, our water problems in this solar system were over forever. Fusion-powered mining vessels and tugs entered our solar system’s asteroid belt and removed as many megatons of almost pure water-ice as we needed. Even though industrial pollution and other ravages had contaminated many of our oceans and rivers over the decades, the ice asteroids were still around, as yet untouched.

Not every solar system has an asteroid belt, however, and not every asteroid belt contains asteroids composed of water-ice. No matter how far we travel, humans still cannot drink ammonia or methane. Nor can humans or plants drink poisonous water. Even machinery can suffer corrosion, or worse, from contaminated water. So what choices do we have when we arrive at a world that is habitable, but possesses little free potable water and no icy asteroids to tap into? It is simply not practical to ship water-purification equipment throughout the galaxy. It is far too expensive, massive, and delicate.

We are left with one possibility. Again, we go back to the “space icebergs” in the asteroid belt. Instead of moving them around within a particular solar system, we move them from one system to another, just as our FTL ships move through space. I came here to announce that I have just obtained a patent on a design to convert interplanetary tankers into KF-powered iceships. I can hear you asking how much a single tanker can hold and whether the idea is practical. Probably not, or we would have already begun doing it. Nor is that exactly what I have in mind. Here is how my plan will work.

The tankers will operate in squadrons of 16 ships. A mining ship will cut a block of water-ice about two kilometers square, and a tug will tow it to the jump point. Once there, the enormous ice cube will be encircled by the tanker squadron. Each ship, operating in exact formation, will then generate its hyperspatial field. The cube, in the approximate center of this roughly globe-shaped formation, will become suspended with the squadron in the hyperspatial field they create. Navigational controls and KF drives of the entire convoy will be computer-controlled from the tanker flagship. In less than an instant, the water-ice and escorts will move from wherever they are to a distant star whose planet is water-poor. Tugs already in-system can then move the ice to any desired location for any desired purpose.

Using this technology, tankers can transport enormous quantities of water-ice anywhere that mankind chooses to go. Dozens of otherwise uninhabitable star systems will now have the water supplies needed to make them livable. Best of all, no one can complain that we are robbing our own solar system’s asteroid belt. My ships will only use ice asteroids from the belts of star systems that could never be made habitable.

There are a few minor technological problems to work out, mostly in control circuitry for sustaining interlapping hyperspatial fields and for jump-directional navigation. I’m confident my engineers can overcome these minor obstacles in short order. Using this patented process, I expect to start making deliveries within six months to any party or parties who request my services. I’ll even supply the Alliance with water, if they ask politely. [Laughter.] For a reasonable fee, I might add. [More laughter.]

Now, are there any questions? [Applause.]

—Rudolph Ryan, at the media conference announcing his development of iceships, Los Angeles, Terra, 10 January 2177. Courtesy of Terran Broadcasting System

Expansion And Autonomy

What is a homeworld, you ask? I'll tell you; a homeworld is any chunk of rock in space where man can live, whether it is Terra or new Terra or some Other Terra. And I can promise you, if there are any Little Green Men who try to push us off, they are going to have a real fight on their hands.

—From Wisdom from the Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Spheres Publications, 2821


Throughout Terran history, there have been numerous examples of successful colonial empires. Spain and Portugal used a system of viceroyalties, and England had its colonial governorships. Though each had a strong, centralized government, the colonies depended on local rule, enforced by strong and loyal countrymen and backed up by a capable military.

Communication is one of the most pervasive problems with this form of rule, however. Maintaining control over far-flung colonies or outposts is difficult, and the longer a directive takes to reach the farthest reaches of the empire, the greater the risk of a breakdown in communications. This time lapse could result in colonies misinterpreting the message, receiving instructions that were no longer timely, or even losing the communication altogether.

After extensive tests and trial and error, the Terran Alliance discovered that most KF-powered FTL ships could not travel more than 18 to 20 light years in a single jump. Advances in technology permitting 30-light-year jumps were still some decades away, and any greater distances would require successive jumps. Though this was a limitation, it seemed insignificant when compared to the previous limitations of mere interplanetary flight.

As long as the most distant colony was within one jump from Terra, the Terran Alliance had no difficulty in keeping all colonized worlds under scrutiny. Once its colonies extended beyond this distance, problems in maintaining the Alliance’s authority began to develop. This was because a starship could not travel directly from Terra to a distant colony, or vice versa, without at least one layover. The time required to recharge the vessel’s drive core forced ships to remain in-system for weeks, even when seawater filled tankers were on hand for on-board deuterium-fusion reprocessing. If no such tanker was present at the jump point, the ship would have to spend days or weeks more in reaching (and returning from the jump point of) a planet where fuel could be collected and reprocessed.

On rare occasions, the Alliance would assemble an entire relay of FTL-ships for transmission of special high-priority messages between Terra and a frontier world. Such an arrangement was incredibly wasteful of resources, however, and required arrangements could be made well in advance, which was even more difficult.

Conventional communications techniques, such as radio or modulated x-rays, were completely useless because of the inherent limitations of the speed of light. Even Kearny and F u c h i d a’s work seemed to lack a workable solution. There was some talk about creating a kind of neutrino-transceiver, but it remained an unproven hypothesis, more suited to fiction than to solving a very real problem.

It was not long before colonization efforts had passed beyond the single-jump distance from Terra, however. As early as the 2140s, colonists were settling on worlds 35 to 40 light years from Terra, and they never looked back. To keep track of this somewhat alarming growth, the Terran Parliament authorized a census in 2168, to be completed within four years. Boldly referred to as the Alliance Grand Survey, its declared objectives were to locate and count the number of Human colonies and to provide a rough estimate of total Human population.

Some have said that the true motives for the Grand Survey were considerably less pure. According to contemporary accounts by some of the colonists, the surveying vessels paid no attention to population tallies. Instead, the crews seemed more interested in “showing the Terran flag” and in making unreasonable and irrelevant demands on the colonists ‘lo prove their loyalty.” Many agreed it was merely a propaganda trick to prove that the Terran Alliance would enforce its authority, no matter how far the colonists traveled from the homeworld. In any event, the government never released the population figures (if ever determined), but other statistics were forthcoming in August of 2172. Mankind had settled more than 100 planets in a Sol-centered sphere roughly 80 light years in diameter. Perhaps even more important, it now took more than three months for messages to travel via FTL between Terra and its new frontier.

During the same year, the Terran Parliament passed a resolution giving increased powers to colonial governors, because it was even more difficult for its Navy to be everywhere at once. Meanwhile, the growing time lag between the center of the Alliance and its outer rim required creation of a system of appointed colonial governors. Lacking the continuous presence of armed Alliance warships, the governors could not claim much power, and so had to delegate some of their cherished authority to the colonists themselves. The leaders of the Terran Alliance realized that they had no choice. Either they lessened their hold to maintain a semblance of authority, or they would lose their position completely.

There is one additional note of interest. The term “homeworld” no longer referred only to Terra, as it once had. This had deep psychological implications, as many colonists had begun to think of themselves as other than Terrans. By 2170, New Earth had already been a colony for 54 years, and so many of its inhabitants were native-born and knew of no other world as home. Step by step, Terra was inexorably losing control over her far-removed subjects.

Ironically, this problem of control worsened after Rudolph Ryan’s invention led to fleets of iceships. Now that more worlds had become available for colonization, the boundaries of the Terran Alliance had stretched even further. The Ryan Cartel did enormously well in terms of profit, and almost as well in terms of its public relations image (despite its huge profits).

Now fueled by transportable supplies of water, the number of inhabited worlds rose sharply. To see this development graphically, one needs only review the survey reports of the late 22nd and early 23rd centuries. The Grand Survey of 2195 listed over 200 colonies in a 90-light-year sphere. The Grand Survey of 2219 listed over 300 colonies in a 100-light-year sphere. Finally, the Grand Survey of 2235 listed over 600 inhabited worlds in a 120 light-year sphere.

Terran Politics

When man goes anywhere, even into outer space, he takes all his bad habits with him. Even politics. Come to think of it, especially politics.

—From Wisdom from the Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Spheres Publications, 2821


From the Western Alliance’s formative years in the first two decades of the 21st century until the early years of the 22nd century, Terran politics underwent a series of ideological “big bangs.” Parties first organized, then fractionalized, with new parties representing new political coalitions coming into power in a constantly evolving process. By 2238, two major power blocs and a handful of minor coalitions had emerged from the rampant political in-fighting on the homeworld. The lesser parties, though given their share, mustered fewer than 5 percent of the Parliament’s entire membership, making them suited only for the role of spoilers.

The Terran Alliance style of government most closely resembled the old English system. Elections were infrequent, but the incumbent party could call for a reaffirmation whenever it seemed appropriate. Also, hastily organized “snap” elections could always take place on a vote of no-confidence.

The Expansionist Party tended to be the Parliament’s majority. Its members wished to maintain a strong imperialist position, hoarding newly colonized planets and assuring Terra’s political dominance throughout inhabited space. The Expansionists were pro-space, and tended to be somewhat authoritarian in their view of how to rule the colonial worlds.

The Liberal Party, in the majority during most of the Exodus years, preferred a less assertive stance. Its members advocated independent reign for any planets whose colonists felt they could do better on their own. The Liberals were not anti-space, as their opponents claimed. They merely saw the galaxy as being large enough for more than one central government. Besides, they claimed that the laws of physics and the logical impracticality of centralized authority were on their side. Except for brief majority reigns of three or four years, however, the Liberal Party was eventually forced to step back in favor of the Expansionists.

Of course, both political parties had their share of extremists, and minor adjustments on points of party doctrine took place over the decades. Still, the strong two-party system continued to perpetuate a centuries-old tradition.

After the so-called “Outer Reaches Rebellion” of 2235-2237, the Expansionist Party received a resounding vote of no-confidence. In a classic overnight election, the Liberals quickly seized the majority and took power the next morning. After implementing a radical—and equally unpopular—isolationist policy, the Liberals lost their majority in 2242, with the minor parties picking up the additional seats.

Terran politics now took on a gruesome aspect. Both major parties, unable to establish a simple majority, jockeyed crazily for political position. Numerous scandals took place, many of them contrived for the purposes of extortion and slander. Geneva, the Alliance capital city since the early 21st century, was the center of desperate rumors, baseless allegations, and investigative inquisitions.

After 2242, neither party could establish a majority for more than two years at a time. These pendular swings continued for more than 70 years, until the Terran Alliance fell in September 2314. Well before that time, however, many Terrans had given up the government as lost. For all practical purposes, it was true. Anarchy now the ruled the planet.

The Beginning Of The End

Two major events in the technology of KF-drive vessels occurred during the early part of the 23rd century. Both advances affected interstellar range and operational endurance. The first involved an increase in drive core efficiency. Space ships could now travel up to 30 light years in a single jump, a level of performance that has never been exceeded.

The second improvement consisted of a new recharging system for the drive core. Recent advances in monomolecular polymers and metal alloys led to the invention of the jump sail, a 50-kilometer-wide net that is deployed aft of the starship. This device would act as a huge (though inefficient, by later standards) photovoltaic cell, capable of absorbing solar energy and converting it to recharge the drive core. This replaced the deuterium-fueled fusion reactor, and allowed the core to be recharged in less time than before. Though the jump sail was a hindrance in tactical situations and often failed to survive a jump intact, its principle was sound. Additional advances in technology eventually reduced the size to more manageable proportions, making it more practical and less subject to incidental (or combat) damage.

Even as the fundamental technology of interstellar travel was improving, the political situation was further deteriorating. There now was a time-lag of eight months from the center of the Terran Alliance to its rim. Never was this delay more painful than when a number of colony worlds declared their independence from the Alliance in May 2235. The Parliament on distant Terra did not hear of the development until January of the following year, some eight months later.

When Terra received the colonists’ rambling, semi-coherent declaration of independence, military leaders saw it as a revolt, and Parliament took some semi-coherent action of its own. Armed, troop-carrying naval vessels moved quickly from Terra to the system’s jump points and beyond. Upon arriving at the frontier, they carried out their orders. System jump points were blockaded, detachments of Alliance soldiers patrolled the streets, and colonists possessing weapons were summarily detained and harassed. Smuggled reports carried at great danger by blockade runners spread from rebel world to rebel world. Obviously, the Alliance would not acknowledge a peaceful act of secession. This could only mean war.

Declaration Of Independence

The time has come for a change, and the winds of fate now blow cold across the plains of this, our home. The warmth of our sun has been lost by the oppressions of a world that no longer understands our needs, no longer guards us from danger, no longer supports our wants. Our people have maintained their heart in the face of adversity, but we fear our soul has been lost. Yet, we do not wish a violent confrontation with our one-time benefactors. Such a course might lead to even worse conditions. Rather, we respectfully request a peaceful resolution to our problem, if such be possible.

[section omitted]

As of this date, the planet Freedom does hereby renounce, revoke, withdraw, and deny the authority, accountability, and responsibility of the Terran Alliance, based on Terra, for our world. We hope that our actions will be acknowledged by the Terran Parliament, and accepted in the humane spirit in which they are intended. However, should the need arise, we are prepared to defend our skies, our soil, our lives, our land, with whatever resources at hand.

—From an editorial published by the Jefferson City [Freedom] Press, 27 May 2235

Word Of Rebellion Reaches Terra

Once the Freedom declaration was received on Terra, things began to move quickly. Major Renault Ygon, a top-echelon military courier, verified the message’s contents, and then delivered a hardcopy by gyrocopter from the Matterhorn transceiver station to the Geneva complex. After we became friends, Ygon confessed that he had never been so nervous in his whole life. After showing identification, he interrupted an ongoing Parliament floor discussion on allocating additional funds for aquaculture farming.

At first, I was unimpressed by Major Ygon’s purpose or credentials and I nearly threw him out of the council hall, until he began shouting, “The rebellion has begun! The planet Freedom has seceded!” Ygon had a powerful baritone voice, lending good effect to his unexpected proclamation.

An unearthly silence came over the council chamber as Ygon explained the nature of his message. The faces of the ministers showed outrage mixed with a sense of controlled panic. Within hours, briefings were called, military officers were informed, and plans were discussed.

Most senior military officers saw the secession as a golden opportunity to show the flag, flex some muscle, and test the Alliance’s yet-unproven ability to conduct interstellar warfare. Some of the more rabid even sought to make an example of Freedom. After three hours of debate, two officers had had enough. I watched as they excused themselves for a few moments to place some calls.” Less than half an hour later, they returned to quietly observe the debate, which continued throughout the day and well into the evening.

Those two officers were none other than General Armando Luchesi and Admiral Leondard Julliard, senior commanding officers of Terra’s 2nd Interstellar Strategic Combined Assault Force [INTERSTRATCAF]. As it happened, three squadrons of KF-equipped strike cruisers, assault carriers, and attack transports were already on maneuvers near Saturn. After Luchesi and Julliard gave the orders, instructions were transmitted from Terra and the force quickly dispatched to the nearest jump point. Pleased with themselves, the two men returned to the debate, knowing that the matter was already well in hand. In less than three days, warships had arrived in-system and were moving toward the worlds of Freedom, Ryde, and Sevren.

Their plan had several general steps. First, to block both jump points of each seceding system, cutting off all interstellar travel, trade, and supplies. Second, to land detachments of Terran marines at each colony of each seceding world to establish a state of total martial law. Third, to severely limit the availability and use of arms by unauthorized personnel (i.e., civilian colonists). Four, to replace-by force, if necessary-any civilian leadership with military officers serving on active duty. It was an ambitious plan, if I may say so. As we were all soon to discover, even the best-laid plans can fail.

—From Parliamentary Procedures: An Autobiography, by Kendal Mannhauser, Terran Parliament Master-At-Arms, Cole-Wittkowski Publishing Co., 2257

The Outer Reaches Rebellion

If the vocation of soldier isn’t mankind’s oldest profession, it’s got to be close.

—From Wisdom from the Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Spheres Publications, 2821


As the Terran Alliance’s blockades and occupations began, the nature of everyday life on colony worlds changed. With curfews, weapons checkpoints, internal passports, and other tactics now commonplace, the colonists began to fight back. Military vehicles would disappear while the soldiers they transported were off on foot patrols and searches. Explosives turned up in some of the most unlikely places, especially as booby traps wired to police barracks. Woodworking and metalworking tools almost vanished from public view, and quantities of handmade weapons (quarterstaffs, spears, maces, crude swords, and so on) were manufactured in increasing numbers.

It was a strange war, if such it could be called. Most combat age civilians left their cities and melted into the surrounding fields, forests, mountains, deserts, or hills. Terran military forces controlled many of the population centers, but were rarely able to exert much authority beyond. Transportation networks (mostly surface highways) were often disrupted by the defenders’ guerrilla tactics. The military did carry out some prearranged ritual executions, such as shooting every twentieth colonist once a week, but that also failed to have the desired effect.

Against the primitive weapons of the civilian colonists, the Terran Alliance wielded the most advanced weapons of war known to mankind. Despite this, not all of the technology proved practical or valuable. The Alliance Parliament immediately ruled out use of weapons capable of mass genocide. The leaders on Terra wanted to subdue the colonists, not to obliterate colonies. This, of course, limited the military’s options.

In another example, atmospheric aircraft were effective in fighting conventional ground warfare, but guerrilla tactics limited their strike potential and made them far from cost-effective. Though capable of conducting long-range reconnaissance and counter-insurgency missions, aircraft also required extensive maintenance, support equipment, and personnel.

One major advantage in the colonists’ favor was their familiarity with the terrain. They had cleared the wildernesses of their worlds to build towns and villages from the ground up, and so knew the best locations for ambush or retreat. The Alliance troops could not possibly fathom the intricacies or eccentricities of combat in these unfamiliar reaches of space.

Ironically, the success of the Outer Reaches Rebellion was due to a single, unexpected factor that had nothing to do with combat on any field or battle. Many colony worlds still needed water from the Ryan Cartel’s iceships for survival. The Alliance Parliament, having refused a policy of colonial genocide, had to recognize the ships as neutral vessels. As a result, the ships were allowed, with certain limitations, to enter and resupply interdicted systems. What the Terran Alliance did not know was that certain crewmembers of these vessels were smuggling battle reports from colony to colony.

As the conflict on Freedom and nearby worlds quickly escalated from martial law to full-scale guerrilla warfare, the Alliance’s military response to the situation grew increasingly unpopular. When word of the fighting slowly spread throughout inhabited space, many still-loyal colonies expressed extreme dissatisfaction. Within a matter of months, what had begun as a mere handful of rebellious colonies had grown to several dozen.

The Alliance military, which had been having enough trouble coping with the colonists’ unorthodox tactics on just a few planets, now suddenly found its resources being stretched throughout known space. The sheer cost of mobilizing and transporting personnel and materiel to the frontier, not to speak of the actual costs of combat, rose to astronomical levels. Reports of colonists being executed (true but exaggerated), rumors of biochemical agents used (completely untrue), and Alliance casualty reports (increasing hourly) led to discontent on Terra.

After a year of running battles on more than 50 worlds, the minority Liberal Party—and many Terrans normally disinterested in politics—made their feelings known. Describing the war as “unwinnable,” this group managed to vigorously block all efforts to obtain additional military funding. It is not likely that Terra could have won this type of war, regardless of funding. Low on supplies, manpower, and vessels, the Terran Alliances forces were slowly being forced to withdraw on most worlds. On the other planets, only a few small garrisons remained.

The colonists had "won,” if either side could win such an insidious conflict. Military and civilian casualties numbered in the hundreds of thousands. As for the material cost of the rebellion, it was estimated in the tens of billions. There was one ironic footnote, however. General Armando Luchesi later wrote in his memoirs that he was “avidly opposed to a military response against the colonists, on the grounds that it was a conflict that could not have a successful resolution for any parties involved.” His book, incidentally, was not a best seller.

Migration

As a result of the Outer Reaches Rebellion, the sociopolitical structure on Terra unraveled. With the Expansionist and Liberal Parties struggling viciously for political control, individual freedoms suffered enormously. “The Terran Alliance has lost control of the stars,” one contemporary political analyst stated, “but its leaders are not about to lose control of Terra.”

When the Expansionists held sway, they passed new laws intended to oppress man’s creative spirit. Strict limitations were placed on all artists (now also construed to mean attorneys, physicians, and certain categories of laborer), and their works were regulated by at least three separate Alliance agencies. Restrictions included the actual number of hours the artist could work, the amount he could charge, and the quality of work he must perform. Enforcement of these laws fell to a new branch of security police called “artistic administrators,” created especially for the occasion. These police would take the artists into custody at special rehabilitation facilities, though the nature of the rehabilitation was not divulged. The AA, as they were known, wore elaborate black uniforms that closely resembled another well-known black uniform from three centuries before.

When the Liberals were in control, they too passed laws. First of all, the government took over all credit establishments and sharply devaluated Terran currency. This gave the government complete control over the price of all Terran goods merely by changing the going rates. It then became a criminal offense to speak of offworld colonies or of anything associated with the Outer Reaches Rebellion. Though these laws were difficult to enforce, there were severe penalties for violations. The most convenient technique consisted of devaluing a person’s electronic credit balance. After a few millionaires spoke unwisely one day and woke up impoverished the next, many others decided to hold their tongues.

Space travel from Terra was almost impossible during the first few years of this “Exodus” period, especially under the Liberal-controlled Parliament. A change in policy took place by 2247, however, when politicians decided to make Terra into a political paradise. This was most easily accomplished by giving any dissidents the freedom to migrate if they so chose. By this time, there were enough hyperdrivepowered ships available to remove the troublemakers from the homeworld.

Before long, the government went from “permitting” these people to leave to actively helping them. The rehabilitation camps were now filled beyond capacity, and the devaluation of currency had begun to have wide-scale negative effects on the entire Terran economy. As a direct result, increasing numbers of starships were constructed, and it became politically “correct” to work in any industry that was directly or indirectly related to the colonization effort.

This, too, came at high price, though many did not realize it then. All research and development efforts ceased as both Liberals and Expansionists cut government funding for new technology from their budgets. Instead of investing in design improvements in starship technology, for example, the government earmarked all funds for mass-producing ships of proven design and equipment. Though the strategy was eminently practical at the moment, the policy slowed technological growth to a crawl.

Another factor contributing to stagnation on Terra was that those most oppressed under the current regime were among Terra’s brightest, richest (at least, formerly), and most talented. Those of second- or third-rate intelligence resented their loss of freedom to a lesser degree but were also less-equipped to make up the technological losses. Before the 23rd century ended, the elite few thousand who were most at home in a fully stocked laboratory or library instead found themselves fighting for survival on new, hazardous, but politically unrestrictive colony worlds.

—From “The Role of the Terran Political System During the Exodus,” an essay by S. Galpin, in Notes From the Past. Levis Simmons, ed., Star League Historical Press, 2608

The Terran Hegemony

From the ashes of political divisiveness, Terra rose once more like a proud phoenix. If the analogy holds true, Terra may one day rise again in political importance capable of casting her shadow over House Kurita and the Draconis Combine. This is something we must not let happen, even if we are forced to attack Terra directly!

—ISF internal memorandum from Theodore Kurita, Prince of Luthien, to Subhash Indrahar, Director of the ISF, ComStar Archives


On July 22, 2315, Fleet Admiral James McKenna issued the following proclamation:

“For almost 100 years, Terra has been devastated by political struggles, bloodshed, hardship, and alternating periods of totalitarian dictatorship and anarchy. The Terran Alliance, originally a body of well-intentioned, skilled political administrators, has become tainted with corruption, graft, and an unhealthy taste for revenge. The Expansionist and Liberal parties, initially struggling to control only the hearts and votes of its constituents, have long since turned to fighting to control our hearts and minds.

"During this period, hundreds of civilians have been killed by soulless police officials. Thousands more have been impoverished, and hundreds of thousands imprisoned—often for life—for imagined, falsified, or politically contrived crimes. Sporadic incidents of hyperinflation, currency devaluation, staggering unemployment, Parliament-authorized firing squads, political oppression in the arts and sciences-all these have led our world to the brink of catastrophe.

“Only a few short months ago, the two leading political combatants suffered the same fate as that of any two cannibalistic tribal chieftains. With nothing left to eat, they turned upon each other tooth and nail. To the surprise of everyone, including myself, both Expansionists and Liberals had acquired secret detachments of trained soldiers, utterly loyal and capable of carrying out any act of inhumanity. It is small consolation that they targeted most of their thrusts at each other; the many deceased citizens of Geneva are unable to appreciate the fact that only ‘a small quantity’ of biochemical agents were used.

“Fortunately for Terra, most of the Alliance’s regular military forces remained politically neutral. And I do wish to compliment these fine men and women who performed their sworn duties under the most trying of conditions. They were especially heroic at the Battles of Zurich and Bangkok, in the defense of the ocean liner SS Prince Albert, and during the raid on L-4.

“More importantly, though, I am pleased to announce that the remaining senior echelon of the Expansionist Party has been captured in the Caribbean. After refusing surrender, they were executed less than four hours ago. With the arrest of the Liberal Party’s key leaders over the last two weeks, we have now eliminated both parties as political forces. In addition, I hold in my hand the resignation of every surviving member of the Terran Parliament who was affiliated with either major party or any of the lesser parties. The few members who refused to resign have been taken into custody. As prisoners, they will receive far better treatment than they bestowed on their own hostages.

“In other words, I declare that as of today, the Terran Alliance and its Parliament are in a state of dissolution.

“Having dealt with the criminals of the past, I now say we must look to the future. The Outer Reaches Rebellion of almost a century ago marked the end of Terra’s influence over the inhabited planets of the galaxy. I contend that we need to reassert our control. Not to dominate or dictate, but to lead, nourish, and provide aid to our fellow human beings. Terra, and Terrans, can still offer much to colonists on distant, often-unfriendly worlds.

“Because colonial expansion has taken place all around our solar system, Terra’s location is ideally suited as the center for trade, mutual defense, culture, and scientific development. Facilities and resources unique to Terra can-and should-be made available for the use of all humans, everywhere. More than this, though, Terra is the only homeworld of our species. To some of us, this respect for heritage still means much.

“Perhaps mankind has evolved from H o m o sapiens to H o m o stellaris—star man. But even a ‘star man’ must have a place he calls home. Many colonists, never having visited Terra, feel they are unwelcome on our world or are unwilling to risk its political dangers. Many others were driven away during the ‘Exodus’ and might never think of returning. I intend to make Terra a world they can again call home, without shame or fear. Terra must be proud of its place in the galaxy, and once again earn a place in the hearts of all mankind.

“As the ranking, politically unaffiliated military leader on the planet, I now declare the establishment of a ‘Terran Hegemony.’ This will be a brand-new government whose primary goal is to reunify our planet with as many colonial worlds as possible under a single, Terran banner. Though membership will not be compulsory, we will offer independent colonies many incentives to rejoin us. I am currently accepting applications for positions in all levels of this new government... and if it would not seem too anachronistic, I would like to wish us all the best of luck.”

The Ozawa Clan

After the Outer Reaches Rebellion ended in 2238, almost every colony world found itself on its own, dependent solely on the resources of its own system and limited interstellar trade. Formal political, economic, or military alliances between worlds did not exist until Lucien Davion conceived and negotiated the Crucis Pact, the first legitimate mutual defense treaty, in 2317. In the meantime, colonists fended for themselves, did not make trouble, and hoped no one else would, either.

The only frequent contact between worlds came as a few shipping and mercantile associations gradually evolved from smaller corporations that had acquired KF-driven ships. These were loosely organized coalitions of merchant brokers and starship crews that provided semi-regular passenger traffic, small-scale cargo transport, speculative trading in both luxuries and necessities, and information of the most unofficial sort. Even at their height, during the second half of the 23rd century, fewer than a dozen of the coops existed, due mostly to limitations in JumpShip availability. At this time of Exodus, most vessels were transporting Terran colonists under Alliance control, limiting the number of ships on hand for other commercial uses.

As the vastness of space became available over the years, each association carved out its own territory of dominant influence and amiably left the others to do the same. Occasionally, a conflict would take place on a world where two territories overlapped, but bloodshed was rare. In most cases, one side would withdraw peacefully, or the two groups might even consent to share the cargo or profits.

For the most part, these associations were valuable for disseminating goods and information (including rumors) that would otherwise have been impossible to obtain. The merchants generally charged respectable fees, but carefully avoided excessive price gouging. After all, they wanted to be able to return and sell again.

Such was the policy of the Ozawa Mercantile Association, a typical example of such loosely organized coalitions. This particular coop served the “northeast” quadrant of the Inner Sphere, including the worlds of New Samarkand and Galedon. As the name implies, the Ozawa clan led the association, owning several ships outright and leasing a handful of others.

Though not outrageously wealthy, the Ozawas had done well enough for themselves at a time when many colonists were barely able to scratch out a meager living. They were not subtle about their wealth and this rubbed off on their merchants, whose professional politeness was always tinged with arrogance. On more than one planet, their customers would have been happier trading with someone else, but the Ozawas had a virtual monopoly in their territory. The underlying resentment toward them would eventually set the stage for important events to come.

Birth Of A Dynasty

Not with dreams but with blood and iron,
Shall a nation be moulded at last.

—Algernon Charles Swinburne, 1837-1909


Shiro Kurita was born in 2270, in the city of Yamashiro, on the colony world of New Samarkand. Kamaro, his father, was a strict disciplinarian and devout follower of the 17th-century Japanese samurai culture. In fact, much of young Shiro’s upbringing reflected this structured spartan existence. Swordsmanship and martial arts training were fully as important in his schooling as the arts of literacy and statesmanship.

New Samarkand, one of the most heavily populated colony worlds, contained a half-dozen city-states ruled by as many feudal lords. At that time, some of the city-states still permitted strictly regulated slavery, though it was becoming somewhat less common. Each lord, supported by a small army, claimed authority over the entire planet, with the net result that no one had clear control. An intricate web of intrigue, subtle threats, and displays of military might made New Samarkand’s politics both interesting and hazardous.

As Shiro grew older, he developed a keen interest in the political workings of his own city-state and planet. Realizing that he must set the stage for bigger and better things that seemed to beckon from the future, he entered local politics. Urizen Kurita, born in 2273, soon followed in his older brother’s footsteps, though he would prove to be more skilled in the arts of war than diplomacy.

Having challenged, cajoled, and outmaneuvered all political opposition, Shiro quickly rose to power. With his incisive mind, great skill at ritual dueling, enthusiasm for political extortion, and exceptional cunning, he became the self-proclaimed Lord of Yamashiro at the age of 24. Urizen also advanced, attaining the rank of Captain in the Yamashiro Guard, the private army of that city-state.

The youngest of New Samarkand’s feudal lords, Shiro Kurita was also the most innovative. In less than a year, he had obtained enough evidence to discredit the reputation of each of his political counterparts. Using the planet’s media facilities, he first played the gracious host and invited the other five city-state lords to a central meeting place. Three were suspicious and so declined Shiro’s offer, to no one’s surprise. Undaunted, Shiro proceeded with a public presentation of a plan to create a single ruling government over all of New Samarkand.

The two lords who accepted his invitation reluctantly agreed to the proposal, though it is not known whether it was because Shiro confronted them with whatever blackmail he had up his sleeve. The three absent lords were bitterly against any such radical changes proposed by a comparative political fledgling, and expressed their dissenting opinions by video within minutes of Shiro’s address.

Before dark fell, Shiro and Urizen had made the necessary arrangements. They had planted specially selected members of the Yamashiro Guard in locations where they might carry out any special instructions. By the next morning, many planetary residents were saddened to hear of the three absent lords’ untimely, and oddly coincidental, deaths. The two lords who cooperated did not suffer the same fate, though they realized what might happen if they failed to continue to support Shiro.

Having persuaded his fellow lords—one way or another—Shiro was ready to pursue larger quarry. In January 2296, he declared himself New Samarkand’s “First Citizen,” and promptly contacted other nearby worlds. Meanwhile, Urizen had purged all the individual armies of potential subversives and reorganized them into a single army under his command.

Terra’s demands for JumpShips had begun to decrease slightly by this time, as the Exodus neared its end. As a result, hyperdrive ships were more readily available to individual worlds or private groups who sought to purchase them. To Shiro’s way of thinking, that meant two things: he could assemble his own fleet of starships to make interstellar war possible and to make New Samarkand far less dependent on the Ozawa Mercantile Association and their ilk.

Shiro Kurita despised the Ozawa family and their trading alliance. Perhaps he was jealous of their great wealth or of their passive, peaceful means of accumulating it. Whatever the cause, he hated the presence of Ozawan merchants on “his” world, because they wore bright, exotic clothes and jewels, carelessly consumed intoxicating beverages, told dubious tales of adventure, and openly flaunted their riches before the astonished natives. Shiro shrewdly honed his own hatred into a rallying cry for other similarly affected planets in the vicinity. With control of New Samarkand and a worthwhile cause, Shiro and Urizen Kurita were now one step closer to building an empire.



URIZEN KURITA

Alliance Of Galedon

What surprising rivalry? The Kurita-Ozawa family dispute only surfaced publicly during the late-23rd and early 24th centuries. The way I see it, Shiro Kurita was trying to get even finally for the way Jisaburo Ozawa made Takeo Kurita look bad at Terra’s Battle of Leyte Gulf—three and a half centuries ago.

—From Wisdom from the Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Spheres Publications, 2821


By the early years of the 24th century, Galedon V was a major colony. Its sizeable population, vast mineral resources, and adequate supplies of uncontaminated water had combined to make the planet one of the most important inhabited worlds, and Galedonians were enormously proud of the fact.

Galedon had had its share of problems with the Ozawa Mercantile Association, however. Although that organization maintained several large facilities onworld and provided many benefits, they had also made substantial profits in trade. Occasionally, those profits were won to the economy’s detriment and the righteous indignation of Galedon’s finance minister.

Shiro Kurita, the young First Citizen of neighboring New Samarkand, let it be known that he, too, bore a grudge against the Ozawas. The Galedon government could not know then that Kurita wanted their world as a psychological and strategic springboard for further offensives. They only knew that here was a forceful, dynamic leader who also did not appreciate the OMA, and so warmed toward him.

Kurita and Nathaniel Imura, Governor of Galedon, corresponded at length, but also at a distance. Galedon’s Colonial Board was in session during March 2302, when it received word that Shiro was arriving via KF-ship. The first meetings were very fruitful, with Kurita offering to pool his world’s technological and military resources with Galedon’s. If it worked well for the two planets, Shiro said that he would attempt to recruit other worlds to join the alliance as well. The Board was astonished but intrigued. An eloquent speaker, Shiro Kurita had enthralled them. They felt he was a kindred spirit, and even the most skeptical listened patiently.

A member of the Board asked who would direct the combined forces. Kurita looked around shyly, and humbly offered to take on that duty. As the modest Director of the “Alliance of Galedon,” he would be in charge of protecting both worlds. Someone asked him to repeat what he had said, and Kurita replied,

"That is the only proper name for such a gallant confederation.” The Galedon board was ecstatic at the opportunity for their world to receive a prominent place in mankind’s history.

Shiro then explained that after he left Galedon, he would visit the nearby worlds of Dnepropetrovsk and Sverdlovsk to offer them membership in the Alliance. Dnepropetrovsk sided with Kurita’s plans and accepted the offer, white the other world’s leaders remained noncommittal. Meanwhile, Kurita’s brother Urizen continued expanding and training the army-on New Samarkand.

With Galedon’s blessing as well as the title of Director of the Alliance of Galedon, Shiro Kurita proved to be as much of a statesman and orator as a strategist. As reports came in and more worlds joined the Alliance, the Ozawa Mercantile Association tried to punish the Alliance by raising transport fees for member-worlds. If they needed any further proof, most Galedonians were now utterly convinced of the Ozawa Mercantile Association’s evil intentions.

However, Kurita had his own plans. Armed Galedonian ships began to board unarmed Ozawan merchant vessels and to confiscate their cargoes. In support of the cause, a large percentage of each cargo went directly to financing further operations, though few civilians were aware of that element of the plan. The members of the Colonial Board did know, however, and privately supported Kurita’s actions while remaining publicly ignorant. This technique of fund-raising worked well for a number of months. By the time the Association caught on, the Alliance of Galedon was operating its own government-controlled merchant fleet-armed and well-escorted, of course.

The Ozawa Mercantile Association was not about to accept Kurita’s actions without a fight, however. After tracing the source of their losses, the Ozawa family’s response was prompt and predictable. Their vessels were hastily equipped with weapons, and now Kurita’s board-and-seize missions turned into running gun battles.

To gain popular support for its position, the Association began to reduce the rates for all services, including cargo transport fees. An effective media campaign on Alliance worlds did help to improve the organization’s public image. Unfortunately, the lurid exposure also shed some light on Shiro Kurita’s unsavory secret tactics.

Even on Galedon, there were a few malcontents who did not agree with the Alliance’s official standpoint toward mercantile associations. Some of these people had the money to purchase special offworld goods, and they wanted them. Unusual foodstuffs, entertainment products, and objects d’art were especially popular with these unpatriotic segments of the population. These people considered Shiro Kurita to be a political strongman and meddler, and the Ozawan-sponsored reports only added to their animosity.

The Galedon Governor and Board defended Kurita as an ally and friend. It was true, they said, that because of his background, he considered many entertainments and artforms to be frivolous, even corrupting. This made it difficult for him to understand how others might crave such things enough to swallow their pride to obtain them.

Once Shiro started something, he saw it through until the end. When he realized that his popularity was slowly slipping, he responded viciously. During the month of November 2303, every known Ozawa Mercantile Association office and support facility was bombed, including at least a dozen complexes on Galedon V itself. Galedon was as much taken by surprise as was the Association.

Kurita was not through yet. By December 2303, detachments of heavily armed soldiers from New Samarkand, supported by small numbers of newly indoctrinated Galedonians, began to move across the “neutral” planet Sverdlovsk. At the same time, squadrons of atmospheric aircraft flew support missions against mobs of unarmed, but potentially dangerous, civilians. The first full-scale interstellar military operation ever seen in the Inner Sphere was about to begin in earnest.

Audience From Sverdlovsk

SHIRO KURITA [mock-genial]: I am pleased to be among you again, citizens of Sverdlovsk.

1ST VOICE: Why don’t you go back where you came from?

KURITA [disdainfully]: Identity yourself, peasant.

2ND VOICE: We meant you no harm... why did you attack our world?

KURITA: I offered your leaders a chance to join with me. They refused—

3RD VOICE [interrupting]: They didn’t refuse. You gave them no choice.

KURITA [screaming]: Any government that does not side with me is against me! Any man who does not help me, hurts me! Anything that does not provide aid is in my way and must be destroyed! How many of you imbeciles must I kill before you begin to understand this?

—Excerpt of live dialogue between Sverdlovsk citizens and Director Shiro Kurita, transmitted via satellite from Chyornyy, Sverdlovsk, 23 December 2303

Show Of Force

When Shiro Kurita invaded Sverdlovsk in late 2303, the military operation required his entire KF-drive fleet and the vast majority of his battle-ready ground forces. Some reports indicate that only school-age military cadets and retirees were left behind to police New Samarkand and Galedon V. Even so, Urizen Kurita’s army was not large, either by Terran standards or when compared to armies of two centuries later. Most accounts agree that roughly four divisions, perhaps 50,000 officers and men, landed in the cities and towns of Sverdlovsk.

Of course, Sverdlovsk had no organized militia, which Kurita knew full well. Moreover, its leaders never expected to face an interstellar invasion, and so were completely staggered by the presence of nervous, but grim-faced soldiers on their peaceful world. Within weeks, the planetary officials (who could barely control their panic) had shakily signed a treaty of complete cooperation.

Not one to remain in the safety of a rear area, Shiro Kurita personally visited several regions of the garrisoned world. During these visits, he seemed to enjoy meeting with the vanquished natives in small meeting halls and assembly areas. During these closely guarded encounters, which he called “audiences,” he claimed to have as many more soldiers available for each world that defied him, a patent falsehood.

In fact, Kurita had no other armies at hand. He was hoping that his single, lightning-quick capture of Sverdlovsk would place enough doubt in the minds of other planetary leaders that they also would fall easily. To this end, he had his speeches transmitted live to relay stations and then beamed into space so that offworld ears might take heed. Kurita realized that he was putting all his horses in one race, as they say, if anything should happen to his army or his fleet, he would be back where he started, or worse.

However, no one dared to call Shiro Kurita’s bluff. He was the first leader in the quadrant to mobilize, train, equip, and launch an entire invasion force, and that was intimidating enough. Many planets were still in the colonial stage, just trying to survive, let alone attempting to field an army to ward off invasion. A handful of worlds deigned not to cooperate, but the leaders of numerous others quickly agreed to sign treaties with Shiro.

Even with his thirst for power, Kurita was cagey enough to continue to refer to his group as the Alliance of Galedon. Rather than give the appearance of seeking to create an empire (which could have unified the colonies to stand against him), he slowly and meticulously annexed one planet after another (both inhabited and uninhabited) in no particular pattern or order. The strategy of “divide and conquer” had worked on Terra for centuries, and apparently the idea was as good as ever. Though his brother Urizen favored full-scale war, Shiro carefully avoided it for as long as he could.

In the meantime, each populated world agreed to send a certain percentage of its citizenry to New Samarkand for indoctrination and military training. On one occasion, the planet Kirei Na Niwa failed to do so, falling short of its total quota by fewer than 20 persons. Before three months had passed, the world had lost exactly double the requisite percentage of its population in mass executions orchestrated by Shiro Kurita and carried out by Urizen. No world ever missed its quota again.

Political Maneuvers

A prince should therefore have no other aim or thought, nor take up any other thing for his study, but war and its organization and discipline, for that is the only art that is necessary to one who commands.

—Niccolo Machiavelli, 1469-1527


After dropping all pretense of peaceful rule, at least among his own staff, the still-youthful Shiro Kurita followed a tradition dating back to the ancient Terran leader, Alexander the Great. By combining political genius and strategic insight, Kurita slowly conquered, besieged, or (more often) persuaded the inhabited nearby planets to join him. Much like Alexander, he personally led his forces in numerous battles, sometimes shoulder to shoulder with his brother Urizen. When things went well on a single front, he would quickly shift his own attention to other matters. If the battle did not progress according to plan, he did not hesitate to intervene and bring inspiration to his followers.

By early 2309, Shiro Kurita had assumed complete control of the Alliance of Galedon, and no longer pretended to seek counsel from other leaders. He was the Alliance, and his word was law. Now he wished to learn how far his word could extend. At this time, his coalition controlled only seven significant populated worlds and fewer than a dozen others, almost all acquired through relatively peaceful means. Yet both Shiro and Urizen agreed that it was not enough.

Using the Alliance as a guise, Shiro made a year-long tour of several major colony worlds, including Dieron, Junction, Benjamin, Worrell, Luthien, and Pesht. The leaders of each of these worlds also controlled several of their respective neighbors. Some styled themselves as nobles, and more than one mentioned having imperial goals of his own. They did not trust one another, and so were wary of some act of treachery. The treachery arrived, but from an unexpected source.

These men were no match for Shiro’s skill in political manipulation, either individually or collectively. Indeed, long before embarking on his extended tour of these worlds, Kurita had obtained as much intelligence as possible on each of the planetary leaders from his spies and informants. Then, there were also spies ready to brief him at the time he arrived at each world. Though not with out its hazards, the plan worked. As each king and duke received him, Shiro showed the man documents “proving” that a nearby rival had intentions of invading and taking over his territories.

He then reluctantly agreed to mediate the dispute, as “a disinterested third party.” To each, he also suggested another alternative. By joining the Alliance of Galedon and uniting his resources with the Kuritas, that planetary leader would have nothing more to fear from his “aggressive” neighbors. Shiro explained that the Alliance was far enough away to be uninterested in conquest, thus posing no threat. On the other hand, it was close enough to provide direct support or to meet an attack on a second front, if it came to war. Of course, the leader would have to agree immediately, or Kurita could not guarantee protection.

This ploy, used with subtle variations for each leader, succeeded on more than a dozen occasions and failed not once. When Shiro Kurita returned to New Samarkand in June of 2310 with a pocketful of signed treaties, the Alliance of Galedon had virtually exploded to encompass more than 30 inhabited worlds. There would be repercussions, however, and they would not be long in coming.

Shiro The Conqueror

Dear Kyoodai [brother]:

Things proceed well on this grand tour. So far, I have visited many worlds. Most of their leaders have wisely chosen to cooperate with us. The others will agree eventually, too, or else they will die.

I know your constant travels between New Samarkand and Galedon have been hard on you. I have your letter saying that the duties are going well, that the army is still growing, that the Alliance munitions facilities have increased their production. This is good, for we may need them at any time to convince reticent parties of our earnest goal.

Also, you must continue to convert light industrial factories to build weapons of war. The colonists may suffer, but the cause is far greater than their petty pain. Be of strong heart. Our accomplishments shall prove the worth all our efforts.

Though I am satisfied with my results, we still cannot know the final outcome. War may begin in this instant, the one after, or an eternity from now. Maintain a strong sense of discipline, and we shall always be greater than our enemies. I see you have found that the whip and the electronic bullhorn, when combined, make effective weapons of motivation.

—From a letter written by Shiro Kurita to his brother Urizen, quoted in Son of the Dragon, Abner Jenkins, ed., University of Pesht Press, 2917

Conquest Of Resistance

It was a good thing that Urizen was dedicated, competent, and enthusiastic, because Shiro Kurita would need his brother’s army sooner than he had dreamed. Though Shiro’s extended tour and its various meetings were an unqualified success, the lords who individually swore allegiance to the Alliance resumed their petty rivalries almost instantly. In June 2311, a dispute broke out between Dieron and nearby Altair. The leader from Dieron promised swift action in response to some imagined insult. At one point, he even threatened to call on his distant but trusted ally, Shiro Kurita, only to discover that Shiro had also promised the Altairian the same protection. Within a few months, each major planetary lord had learned of the means Kurita had used to win their pledges.

To some, this was an outrage. Others simply continued to honor and accept the Alliance of Galedon as an official ruling body and ally. In effect, Shiro Kurita had bought a few months’ time while making only a few enemies. To his way of thinking, this was a worthy trade. Resistance to Kurita’s authority was greatest on the worlds of Benjamin, Telos IV, and Asgard. The local leaders of these three worlds were indignant and felt that they had been both manipulated and betrayed. Instead of taking out their aggressions on their neighbors, as had been the custom, they became THE WAY OF hostile toward Shiro Kurita, sending numerous communiqués expressing their resentment in explicit detail.

This led to the famous Council of One summit meeting in September 2311. Shiro Kurita cordially invited every known lord in the northeast quadrant to attend. More than a thousand leaders, dignitaries, representatives, and political hangers-on accepted. Ever the devious statesman, Kurita made an impassioned speech condoning cooperation between worlds for the betterment of all. While he spoke, Urizen Kurita ordered two companies of his best troops to surround the meeting hall. A vote was taken on Shiro’s measure. Those in favor returned home safely; those opposed were shipped home to their next of kin. All in all, less than half survived.

Later that month, the fleet and army of the Alliance of Galedon invaded Benjamin, Telos V, and Asgard. Though none of the three planets mustered a substantial army, the citizens of each were devoted to their freedom and refused to submit peaceably. Casualties were enormous on both sides, as the defenders adopted old Terran guerrilla tactics, and the attackers used every known contemporary weapon except CBR (chemical, biological, and radioactive) warheads. In the end, Benjamin fell in October, Telos IV in April, and Asgard in August of 2312.

For some worlds, this invasion was like a rallying cry to rise up in arms against the Kuritas. For others, it was a painful lesson that they did not want to experience first-hand. Furthermore, some even sided with Shiro Kurita and joined Urizen’s army because of its admirable success in military conquest.

During the next seven years, a handful of individual worlds momentarily asserted their independence—offering increasingly disjointed resistance—then caved in as the Alliance forces moved in to decimate their homes and factories. Many worlds, completely unprepared for full-scale warfare, had only half-trained police and scattered militia to contend with Urizen’s battle-proven forces. The total number of defending casualties, civilian and military, numbered in the millions and would surely have been greater had the planetary populations been larger.

After 2317, more and more planetary leaders (survivors of the Council of One meeting and the subsequent invasions or their successors) had sworn oaths of allegiance to Shiro Kurita. All was going according to his plan. By November 2319, Shiro Kurita had achieved his objective of controlling a narrow empire of planets stretching from near Terra to the Draconis Rift. A single, tenuous spur of controlled worlds also branched off, reaching as far as his homeworld of New Samarkand. Only the Rift limited his growth outward, it being a partially explored region of space within which, presumably, there were very few habitable worlds.

The Way Of The Dragon

Dear Musuko [son]:

You are 14 years old now, and a man. Though I am still well and fit to lead, you will serve the Kurita line in the event of my demise. You are also old enough to learn some things that I could not tell Tenno-the-boy.

Our forces have paid the price in blood, valor, and high honor to help me create a domain... a kingdom... a dynasty. I charge you, my son, with its protection after my death, on whatever day that may come. I am the Coordinator of the Draconis Combine. My brother Urizen is the Warlord. But you are its future, and your children and their children. Remember this.

I have chosen the dragon as our standard and our symbol, reflecting many facets of our existence. We must never forget the ancient Terran heritage of our line, with its samurai greatness. I remind you, too, that in many mythologies, the dragon is feared and respected for its strength, cunning, and willingness to destroy for the sake of its own power. Always keep the virtues of the dragon in mind, and use them to defeat your opponents.

You may recall that I have spoken much about the treacherous Ozawas and their wealthy merchant fleets. You may now know that the Ozawas no longer concern me. Having met our forces, they were forced to concede defeat after many losses. We, not they, are now the power with whom all in our quadrant must reckon. The Ozawa Mercantile Association must now abide by our rules. Give them no thought or care. A debt nearly four centuries old has been paid in full. From now on, we have the advantage and shall press it whenever we choose. If one wishes to show who is master and who is the victim, it is better to inflict a lingering pain upon an enemy than a quick death.

Always preserve the dragon, and its magic will keep you strong.

—From a letter written by Shiro Kurita to his son Tenno, as quoted in Son of the Dragon. Abner Jenkins, ed., University of Pesht Press, 2917

Growth Of The Combine

During the first two decades of the 24th century, Shiro Kurita created the Draconis Combine, a relatively large totalitarian empire whose “member” worlds he had united through force. Meanwhile, the Terran Alliance had finally collapsed in 2314. In its place was the newly formed Terran Hegemony, led by Fleet Admiral James McKenna. McKenna had his own dreams of empire, but he wished to achieve them through less violent means.

McKenna’s Hegemony pre-dated Kurita’s Draconis Combine by only five years, but McKenna had used the time well in ambitious projects to promote technological improvement and mutual defense. Just as Kurita was openly declaring his leadership, a number of worlds near Terra were signing (or had already signed) treaties with McKenna.

Though Kurita would never admit it openly, the surprising success of McKenna’s newly formed Hegemony led to a major change in his growth policy. Kurita had at first intended to expand his domain in the direction of Terra, but a number of the planets he had coveted were already spoken for. The Draconis Rift proved an even more tenacious obstacle, leaving him only three directions in which to grow: toward the Federated Suns of House Davion, toward the regions controlled by the Federation of Skye and the Tamar Pact, or toward the loosely knit Principality of Rasalhague.

In 2320, Shiro Kurita made a wise, though unusually conservative, decision. Instead of attempting a major thrust into a neighboring empire, he proceeded to choose worlds that were within easy striking range of his own. At the time of its establishment, the Draconis Combine was much like a scattered collection of islands in a huge archipelago. Kurita did not yet control every “island” in his own island chain, let alone any islands elsewhere. By expanding slowly but consistently, he planned to take most of the remaining independent worlds that existed in the gaps of space between now-loyal member planets. Ever the brilliant military strategist, Shiro developed the process of interstellar war into a fine art.

Individual worlds went through the gradual process of isolation, subjugation, and consolidation, as their respective leaders were ‘Persuaded” to join the Draconis Combine. By the late 2320s, even Shiro’s enemies (of which he now had fewer and fewer, thanks to Urizen’s efforts) grudgingly admired his methods. Having suppressed opposition and redirected it into unification, he had enhanced the overall prosperity of his domain. Still, something was lacking. Realizing that his new empire would need a cause to preserve its unity, Kurita elected to move against the Principality of Rasalhague in 2330.

Though the campaign against Rasalhague would go poorly for many years, Shiro Kurita would see the other areas of his dynasty expand to include more than 60 major worlds. The approximate borders ranged from near Terra to the Draconis Rift, and from the edge of the Principality of Rasalhague to the border of the Federated Suns. By 2348, the Draconis Combine was perhaps the second-most powerful interstellar power of the ten existing states. Only the Terran Hegemony stood above it.

Shiro Relents

I offer you an opportunity to join with the Terran Hegemony and to add your resources to our own.

—Official transmission from James McKenna, Director-General of the Terran Hegemony, to Shiro Kurita, Coordinator of the Draconis Combine, circa 2325


The eel rarely seeks the same prey as the goldfish. The eagle flies not with the pigeon. The tiger needs no friendship with the goat. Such are the paths of the Draconis Combine and the Terran Hegemony.

—Shiro Kurita’s immediate response


Except for one brief message in 2325, Shiro had never recognized the authority of James McKenna, Director-General of the Terran Hegemony, and refused to communicate with him. In 2340, Michael Cameron succeeded the deceased McKenna. With the change in leadership, Shiro was willing to make the expedient move. He signed a limited trade pact with the Terran Hegemony, openly stating his hope that Cameron “would be satisfied and seek no more.” Though this opened the way for limited trade, economic exchanges, and substantially financed the Combine’s expanding industrial base, he secretly reaffirmed his vow that one day he (or his descendants) would rule all of space. Shiro Kurita died in 2348 from natural causes, but his oath lived on.



SHIRO KURITA

The Principality Of Rasalhague

We Rasalhagians were a noble collection of proud peoples. We asked little, except to be left tour own destiny and devices. Though life was hard on the new and often forbidding worlds during the Exodus, we managed. It was no harder for us on those strange new planets than for our own ancestors of a millennia before. The freedom to live or die—by our own choice, and not the choice of our government—that is all we sought.

During the Exodus, many of us left our homeworld, never to return. With heavy hearts and a deep sense of regret, thousands of colonists ventured from the Federal Democratic Republics of Sweden, Finland, and Norway. It seemed that our ancestors saw the shape of things to come and decided to abandon Terra even before the main wave of emigration had begun.

Our reasons for leaving were as much geopolitical as they were economic. It was not so much that we wanted to go, but that conditions forced our departure. Our nations had suffered extensively as a result of the Second Russian Civil War in the early 21st century. The hordes of displaced civilians fleeing across the border from their destroyed Soviet homes created severe economic dislocation and near-anarchy in our homelands. As late as the mid-23rd century, nearly 150 years later, these once-prosperous nations were still paying the exorbitant social and financial costs of rebuilding the splintered Soviet states. The assessments, assigned by the Terran Parliament and cruelly enforced by Alliance authorities, ensured the economic and psychological bankruptcy of our once proud lands.

When our chance came, we chose to flee. At that time, the unexplored planet of Rasalhague was about as far away from Terra as anyone could imagine. Thus, it was the perfect refuge for a people who had developed a deep and lasting resentment for oppressive, impersonal bureaucracies supported by a strong military. The Terran homeworld seemed bent on depriving our people of their dignity and their means of survival. Thus, we found our sanctuary in Rasalhague and other nearby worlds. Here we looked forward to autonomy and as much physical distance as possible from the authority of Terra.

The worlds settled in this region during this time were organized into a loose structure of clan-oriented families. Family heads took responsibility for their own, and annually elected a single head for each planet, known as a varldherre, or worldlord. In turn, each world-ford paid lip service to the Prince of Rasalhague, elected once every ten years (hence the name “Principality”). We were loyal to our Prince, but not fanatical.

The prince, often referred to affectionately as the “High Chieftain,” was nominally responsible for the safety and well-being of every Rasalhagian. In practical terms, though, this protection amounted to little more than verbal agreement to a mutual defense pact. For all intents, every family was on its own and would live or die by its wits and the resources at hand.

Aside from petty family in-fighting and inevitable minor disagreements in planetary politics, we minded our own business. Surviving, we found, was a difficult chore. It became a standard political joke for commentators to add that ‘The Principality of Rasalhague was generally conspicuous by its absence.” As a rule, our citizens showed little interest in interstellar politics, other newly formed governments, or the activities of Terra.

In fact, we might have kept entirely to ourselves until population pressure built up to the point that we needed to expand our vision and our territories (not necessarily in that order). Judging from current trends and if left to our own ways, this might have taken several centuries. Unfortunately, our independence would be forever crushed in 2330 by the heavy boots of the armies of the Draconis Combine.

—From Under the Dragon’s Claw, A History of Rasalhague, by Rebekka Rogers, Tamar Interstellar Press, 2561

War Against Rasalhague

The Draconis Combine should not have chosen a dragon for its symbol. Instead, it should have taken for its standard the image of an octopus, with its venomous tentacles reaching throughout the northeast quadrant, sucking the life from everything they touch.

—From Wisdom from the Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Sphere Publications, 2821


The Kuritas are always mouthing about their honor. However, if you pay strict notice, they never attack a party that is their equal, they only strike against weaker opponents, knowing when they bear an unfair advantage. New Bergen served them right.

—From an anonymous anti-Kurita pamphlet distributed in the Principality of Rasalhague, circa 2340


After consolidating the worlds immediately surrounding his Draconis Combine, Shiro Kurita again looked toward his neighbors in his plan to expand the Combine’s influence. Though the Federated Suns controlled a number of attractive worlds, Kurita felt that the Davion sphere might be too distant for an easily won campaign. At this time, in 2330, the Draconis Combine did not yet share a common border with the Federated Suns.

Meanwhile, the Protectorate of Donegal, the Tamar Pact, and the Federation of Skye were in the midst of discussions to unite their three territories. Instead of directly attacking any of the three before the group had joined together, Kurita made one of his very few strategic errors. For unknown reasons, he shied away from that region and dispatched his brother Urizen, now Warlord, to move against the Principality of Rasalhague. Had he attacked the Tamar Pact at this stage, before it helped to form the Lyran Commonwealth, House Steiner would likely never have come into existence. Instead, Rasalhague fell victim.

During the first three years of the campaign, Urizen encountered only token resistance. After a few months, he even sent for his sons Victor and Isaac, also warriors in the Kurita tradition. Urizen’s health was slowly deteriorating, and he wanted to ensure that the Kurita bloodline would remain in battle. The younger Kuritas relished combat and quickly rose within the ranks.

Several Rasalhague member-worlds fell in a matter of months, with Combine advances limited more by logistics than by the minimal opposition. Using “leap-frogging” techniques, the Kuritans seized planets in a seemingly erratic sequence. In this way, Urizen would continue to keep the enemy off guard while always creating an advance staging base for upcoming attacks. Other planets would then be taken during a second wave, sometimes two to four years later.

Moderately large Combine garrisons and enormous weapon caches were stationed on the advance bases, as Urizen and his forces seized worlds and continued to penetrate deeply into the Principality. In fact, by late 2333, they had actually bypassed the planet Rasalhague, having seized and subjugated New Bergen in its place. This move surprised even the Rasalhagians, who felt sure Urizen Kurita would strike for their capital. In retrospect, he should have.

In January 2334, Victor and Isaac Kurita made up a small part of the Draconis Combine occupation force on New Bergen. The troops there were preparing for action against the planet Outpost, but, for the moment, were enjoying an extended R&R period before the next battle. During this state of lessened attention, a powerful defending force dropped onto the world and combined their might with a prearranged uprising of local citizens. In an unprecedented massacre, the defenders wiped out the occupation force to the last man. Huge stocks of armored ground vehicles, personal weapons and artillery, munitions and equipment, and even a handful of parked JumpShips were captured and quickly distributed among the Rasalhagians.

Combined with the natives’ own resourcefulness and sense of economy, these new weapons provided them with a means to fight the Draconis Combine on their own terms. In fact, the seizure of this single supply depot prolonged the fighting for at least two full decades. On a more personal note, the loss of his sons at New Bergen nearly drove Urizen Kurita mad. Though he was coordinating battle plans elsewhere, it did not take long for him to hear of the debacle. Some say he turned almost purple upon receiving the news. In view of his heart condition, that is entirely possible.

Urizen never saw his revenge fulfilled, however. Though he did continue to lead his forces for the next two years, his health continued to worsen. In April 2336, he died from congestive heart failure. Upon learning of his brother’s death, Shiro took the news with characteristic stoicism, reportedly saying: “Branches of the tree die, but the tree lives on.” Fortunately for that side of the Kurita family line, Urizen’s third son Adam was safe at home on New Samarkand, as was Victor’s own son Vladimir. The Kurita dynasty was never seriously jeopardized, to the disappointment of its enemies.

After Urizen’s death, Shiro’s son Tenno personally took command of the Combine forces in Rasalhague. Though he was no general, Tenno maintained tenuous control until Urizen’s son Adam replaced him in 2342. This freed Tenno to return to his training for the position of Coordinator, which he took over in 2348 upon his father’s death. Adam Kurita held the position of Warlord of Rasalhague until 2385.

Thanks to the New Bergen raid, guerrilla fighting continued in the Principality of Rasalhague for three decades. In 2367, Tenno finally declared the Rasalhague menace “vanquished,” and withdrew most of the Combine’s armed units present. In reality, the Principality remained officially neutral and an independent state until 2510, almost a century and a half later.

New Bergen Battle Report

Dear Kyoodai:

With an inflamed heart, I write to you.

I have suffered heavily from an attack made by the rebellious subversives who reside in the Principality of Rasalhague, and I seek blood vengeance for an eternity.

My sons Victor and Isaac are both dead, killed by cowardly villains who would strike blows with stones at children.

A vicious attack has just occurred on New Bergen. Catching our forces unaware, the enemy massacred the entire garrison and also made off with the contents of the supply depot. It was the main storage facility for our entire Rasalhague offensive, billions of yen in equipment stolen. Everything—EVERYTHING—is gone, even a flight of our newest JumpShips!

Rage overfills my heart, and I now see the faces of my dead sons in nightmares. Shiro, I have had the same dream four nights running: Isaac stands in a circular pit of flames, and Victor, standing above, stretches out his hand, trying to reach him. I can see everything, but am too far away to help or cry out a warning. I think this vision comes to me from that stanza of Kokinshu that touched us both so much.

These losses in munitions and equipment will delay the war against Rasalhague for months, or even years. I assure you that I have created some of the most exquisite tortures possible, should I ever capture those responsible. Weep for Victor and Isaac, as I do.

—From a letter written by Urizen Kurita to his brother Shiro, as quoted in Son of the Dragon, Abner Jenkins, ed., University of Pesht Press, 2917


This night of no moon
There is no way to meet him.
I rise in longing—
My breast pounds, a leaping flame,
My heart is consumed by fire.

—Kokinshu by Ono no Komachi, ninth century

Tenno's Reign

Tenno Kurita, elder son of Shiro Kurita, was born on New Samarkand in 2305. He became the Second Coordinator of the Draconis Combine upon his father’s death in 2348. Though a skilled organizer and administrator, he was mild-mannered and no match for his father in statesmanship or military strategy. He spent the first two-thirds of his reign promoting industrial development (to eventually produce weapons and munitions), forging closer diplomatic relations with the Terran Hegemony, and organizing the Combine into a workable administrative government. Tenno divided the Combine into military districts and prefects. Though exact district and prefecture borders changed on numerous occasions to reflect battle gains or losses, the system is still in use today.

A pragmatist in his own way, Tenno knew the Combine’s best chances for growth lay in sheer numbers of people. To encourage an expanding population, he awarded merit citations and rewards to mothers of large families. In conjunction, he also developed mandatory indoctrination training for citizens of all ages, beginning as young as four or five years of age. His sole motive was to boost the number of Kurita-loyal colonists on thinly populated worlds. It worked, and families with 10 or 15 children became common.

The greatest crisis during Tenno’s reign occurred near its end, when a terrorist raid took place on Rasalhague in December 2375. An unknown number of guerrillas evaded the guards and attacked the Draconis Combine RMD housing complex. Vladimir Kurita, Rasalhague Military District Governor, and almost every member of his family (as well as Tenno’s own sister Omi, who was visiting) were killed. In addition, the body of Vladimir’s 18 year-old daughter Oma was not found. Jason, Vladimir’s oldest son, was on New Samarkand where he was attending military school, and so escaped death.

Tenno found such terrorism revolting. As the incumbent Coordinator, he was responsible for the well-being of his family, and so his sister’s untimely death was a profound disgrace and loss of honor. Tenno contemplated seppuku, or ritual suicide, a decision his son Nihongi supported wholeheartedly. When Omi’s body arrived at the capital of New Samarkand on March 10, 2376, Tenno immediately carried out his intentions. Nihongi joyfully stepped in, becoming the next Coordinator.

Tyrant Of Rasalhague

Tragedy struck during the last week with the return of Jason Kurita. Why couldn’t he have stayed on New Samarkand, or gone elsewhere?

He has replaced his father Vladimir as Military Governor, and the new reign of terror has already begun. One day a week, at dawn, randomly selected civilians are taken (or carried or dragged) to a field adjacent to the Governor’s Palace in New Rasalhague. As soon as I heard about it, I hid myself there to secretly witness what was going on.

Jason was having the poor people executed, though they were not charged with any crimes. Some were still wearing their nightwear, trying to get their eyes to focus, as they were placed back to back in a rude huddle. Then the slug-throwers opened up. That patch of ground is already being called the “killing field.” Last week, a dozen. This week, two dozen. How many next week?

Our esteemed Governor was in attendance, clothed entirely in black. Sources indicate that he plans to attend as often as possible. His expression showed grim determination rather than enjoyment, which is curious. One wonders why he is ordering these murders, but no one will question him directly.

Every day, Jason makes his two-hour planetwide radio address, making insults and veiled threats, then wailing and weeping at the loss of his family. Rumor has it that it the Military Governor learns of any citizen who does not listen to the address, he will add him to the executions.

With Jason Kurita as Military Governor of Rasalhague, we may soon think of Vladimir’s reign as the “good old days.”

—Anonymous editorial from the Rasalhague Freedom Caller. [a subversive alternate media publication] December 2375

A Lukewarm Leader

Nihongi Kurita, the only son of Tenno Kurita, was born on New Samarkand in 2336. He became the Third Coordinator of the Draconis Combine in 2376, after his father’s suicide. A vain and petty little man without the capacity for long-term visions, Nihongi treated his lofty position like an attractive toy. While his father lived, the son had coveted the position desperately. Once it was his, Nihongi could find no use for it.

Though his reign lasted 20 years, he launched no major offensives, signed no meaningful documents, and only whined and sucked about wanting everyone to obey him. However, he was an excellent horseman and maintained an enviable stable of high-quality breeding stock. He was often seen riding a splendid stallion around the palace. Unfortunately, he often let pressing affairs of state go unresolved while he enjoyed his jaunts.

Nihongi took little notice, in fact, when word came of Oma Kurita’s fate. In 2377, Kurita intelligence sources learned that Oma was not killed on Rasalhague with other members of the Kurita family. Instead, she was alive, and possibly well, on Trondheim. Adam Kurita, the current Warlord of Rasalhague and sole surviving son of Urizen, led the rescue party. After several harrowing encounters and a rather lengthy firefight, Oma and her newborn son, Daniel Sorenson, were returned safely to New Samarkand. Apparently, Oma had fallen in love with Jan Sorenson, the High Chieftain of her captors, and in a strange twist of fate had married him. The elder Sorenson was killed during the rescue mission.

Nihongi’s only reaction was to withdraw several military units from the Rasalhague Military District.

During the early years of his reign, Nihongi’s one positive act was the transfer of a number of the Rasalhague units to duty stations along the Kurita/Tamar and Kurita/Skye borders. The Skye and Tamar leaders became seriously concerned, believing that this was the prelude to an invasion. Nihongi ignored any possible opportunities for advance, however, and Combine attacks never went beyond minor border raids. Some raids were for the sake of capturing supplies or stocks of raw materials, while others had only nuisance value.

As Coordinator, Nihongi’s lukewarm leadership caused consternation throughout the Draconis Combine. Factions began to form, some with the purpose of obtaining his resignation, others offering a more permanent solution. Even the most patient could not accept their leader’s political indifference or ineptitude.

The situation had deteriorated completely by November 2393. Robert Kurita, Nihongi’s eldest son, discovered his sister Marika had also been enjoying her father’s horses and stables, but had slightly different breeding plans in mind. Robert discovered, purely by accident, that Marika had become pregnant by Werner Von Rohrs, one of the stable hands. In a fit of rage, Robert killed him with a shovel, but Marika eventually bore the child, Nihongi Von Rohrs, in May 2394.

Werner’s death was not enough to slake Robert’s anger. He sought out his father’s advice, but the elder Kurita was no help. For almost two years, the political turmoil grew within the Combine. Meanwhile, the Coordinator remained blissfully unaware that his political future was nearing an end. Several parties, including his son Robert, were planning his demise when, coincidentally, he fell from his prize racehorse while riding up a steep incline. He broke his neck and died instantly, saving Robert the trouble of executing him. Robert Kurita assumed the throne in April 2396, becoming the Fourth Coordinator of the Draconis Combine.

Oma Kurita never recovered from grief for her husband, who died as she was rescued. She turned to absinthe, but it did not relieve the pain in her heart. She died in 2397 from chronic liver failure and related complications at the age of 40 years.

A Race To Arms

During the 24th century, ten separate states with strong central governments evolved within the Inner Sphere. Some were formed through mutual cooperation and consent, while others were created through conquest and military domination.

Many of these new political powers faced the same problems that had confronted individual colony worlds during the previous century, only multiplied tenfold. Treachery and political Darwinism flourished, as the richer or more populated planets dominated, and even exploited, their less fortunate neighbors. Now, instead of two worlds fighting between themselves, two powers (each responsible for many worlds) might face off, and these struggles were not always confined to diplomatic channels.

With a relatively large population base, easily obtained raw materials, and a tradition of many centuries of scientific research, the Terran Hegemony maintained technological superiority over the other states. This in turn enhanced its political influence, especially when dealing with governments whose worlds still lacked such fundamental necessities as water. Trade, both of goods and information, flourished between the Hegemony and the more cooperative governments.

This did not mean that peace was an uninterrupted luxury, however. As the century progressed and each state attempted to define its borders more emphatically, border disputes heightened in frequency and intensity.

Struggles over strategically valuable planets escalated from verbal disputes to small skirmishes to battlefields covering an entire world. Scientific research veered away from improving the quality of life, now at comfortable levels on most worlds, and took aim at weapons research and development.

Over the 24th century’s last three decades, many border worlds in sensitive areas underwent a remarkable change. They progressed from being equipped with navigational aids and glorified police officials to having sophisticated ship detection equipment, fully armed KF-driven JumpShips, a variety of system defense craft, and large garrisons of crack troops. Many border worlds even began to resemble encampments under siege, because their mineral or hydrological wealth made them prime targets for their neighbors. The Age of War would soon rear its ugly head.

The Dynastic Government: A Discussion

TORINA: During the 24th century, the dynastic form of government reappeared in force. This “dynacracy” reached its previous peak in ancient Egypt and China, among other Terran nation-states. Now, can anyone tell me what was the major advantage of the dynastic government?

SULLIVAN: To create a rigid ruling caste by virtue of birth?

TORINA: Not exactly. Aoki?

AOKI: The dynasty provided each citizen with an instant means of identifying the powers-that-be. Name recognition, ease in determining persons of authority.

TORINA: Correct, but what single major factor led to its reappearance?

MARDIPEN: The anarchy on Terra and the Exodus?

TORINA: Right. Can anyone tell me how we can be sure the dynasty is still working?

AOKI: Because that governmental form inherently leads to good government.

TORINA: What is good government? Never mind. The dynasty was chosen because some system was needed and it was the most viable, given the circumstances of the time. It still works, and that is proof in itself. There have not been any attempts to alter the governmental form for centuries.

JIGLICH: How does that explain the Succession Wars?

TORINA: Those wars are essentially family feuds, involving five competitive dynastic fines. Each Successor State advocates the supremacy of its own House over all others. There are no democracies, republics, or theoretical sovereignties even in the running, at least not within the Inner Sphere.

MONTROSE: What effect is there when the leader of a House is killed?

TORINA: You have had your biology and classical mythology classes. Like the mythical hydra or common flatworm, when a House loses its head, it grows a new one.

D’ANCONIA: How does one destroy a dynasty, then?

TORINA: When you have mastered that secret, you will have learned how to unravel the greatest fallacy inherent in the Successor States.

—From a ComStar lecture in pre-League political history by Precentor Adam Torina

The Age Of War

During the 25th century Death and Destruction threatened the end of the Human race. The ten states of the Inner Sphere rediscovered the Arts of War anew, with ever-improving weapons. Only the Ares Conventions and its strict codes of battlefield honor saved man from himself. Yet, these same codes also fostered the use of war to resolve every disagreement. Not since the height of the almost-forgotten Terran Roman Empire had man fought so much for so little reason.

The invention and widespread use of a new multi-functional weapon system known as the BattleMech only added to this image. More importantly, it brought the zenith of war back from the most impersonal form of mass destruction to deliberate acts by individual combatants-sin-filled murderers, if you will. How ironic that we had come full circle. Once again, the greatest ‘sport’ in the universe consisted of gladiatorial games. This barbaric caricature of life, no matter how carefully concealed or rationalized, proved that we were even more base than animals.

—unpublished diary entry by ComStar Director Jerome Blake, as revealed to Conrad Toyama


CONTROLLING WARFARE

In 2398, a territorial dispute between the Capellan Confederation and the Free Worlds League erupted into open warfare, the first such war in over a century. In the next 14 years, dozens of extremely bloody, destructive wars were fought over frontier worlds. In 2412, a fierce battle in the Tintavel system resulted in thousands of civilian casualties. With such rampant destruction threatening civilization, representatives of all ten states met on New Olympia to sign the Ares Conventions. Realizing that war could not be eliminated, these representatives drew up a body of interstellar laws to regulate warfare and to minimize its impact on humanity.

The Ares Conventions banned warfare in heavily populated areas and prohibited military destruction of civilian economies. Though war became an almost continuous fact of life in the 25th century, it was a less destructive event. It had been transformed into a more chivalric contest of maneuver and tactics. Forces would surrender rather than fight against unfavorable odds, with the knowledge that another contest would soon arise. All governments recognized the necessity of preserving the civilian populations, in order to have something left to fight for. This agreement would only fast as long as all signers adhered to the guidelines, and so compliance with the Ares Conventions was universal. Warfare became far less destructive, but leaders were now more willing than ever to use war as a means of resolving even the most minor dispute.

Another development in the 25th century changed methods of warfare more permanently than did the Ares Conventions. In 2439, scientists working on New Earth unveiled the first combat-ready battledroid. Using myomers to power artificial legs, these giant, human-shaped battle machines, called BattleMechs, were more mobile than wheeled or tracked vehicles. Their size, firepower, and armor made the BattleMechs invincible on the mid-25th century battlefields. At first, the Terran Hegemony controlled all BattleMechs and used this advantage to subdue every opponent.

In 2455, several ‘Mechs were captured in a raid on Hesperus 11, and the technology quickly spread throughout human space. Despite the ‘Mechs of other states, the Terran Hegemony maintained the upper hand, with constant improvements in its battlefield technology that others could not match.

The appearance of ‘Mechs reinforced the Ares Conventions. Highly skilled warriors could fight complete battles in a small area, reducing the risk to civilian populations. Even using BattleMechs, very few battles fought at this time were decisive. Most battles established temporary control over a small territory, control that could be challenged at any time by another small battle force.

Advances Against Tamar and Skye

If war is such hell, why does man enjoy it so much?

—Wisdom from the Universe, by Homer Kellogi, Explorer, Celestial Spheres Publications, 2821


Hordes of red dragons attack us from space
Threat’ning with missile and fireball
Killing our worlds, destroying our race
Gleefully watching our Skye fall!

—Steiner graffiti, circa 2410


After several decades of smoldering hostilities and minor skirmishes, open warfare finally broke out in 2398 between the Capellan Confederation and the Free Worlds League. No one was more disappointed than Robert Kurita, who sincerely wanted to be the first to start a war. In January 2399, he began making his own plans for an attack and called in his staff for a briefing.

All agreed that House Steiner’s provinces of Tamar and Skye were better targets than House Davion. At the moment, however, the Lyrans were better-equipped than the highly disciplined Combine forces. Knowing that even the best-trained troops cannot survive against superior firepower, Lord Kurita agreed that he must first provide his army with more powerful new weapons. That meant postponing any major military action for at least several years.

Not known for his patience, the waiting was hard on the young Coordinator. Despite his anxiety and continued chafing, however, the time was well spent making his men and equipment ready. In the meantime, he ate, slept, and dreamed about war, while frequently reconsidering his overall strategy. What little Kurita did know about strategy, he learned from studying Terran history.

The Terran tactical concept of dual encirclement and pincer movements so intrigued him that he wanted to give it a try. He did not realize that ground tactics do not necessarily work for the purposes of strategic-scale interstellar war. After much discussion and some second thoughts, Robert finally settled for an attack against the Federation of Skye.

One pincer would strike near the Tamar/Skye border and swing down deep into Skye territory. The second pincer, to be launched a year later, would move through the Kessel-Dromini area and link up as quickly as possible. The combined sweeps should isolate a large portion of the Federation and leave it in Combine control. If all went well, Robert promised everyone, the advances might even threaten Terra itself.

In November 2407, forces from the Draconis Combine crossed over into the Tamar Pact just above its border with the Federation of Skye. Kurita and his generals directed these forces to make at least two diversionary strikes, then to aim toward Terra in a flanking motion. The second complete force was already in position and awaiting orders.

Fighting was fierce. The defenders, unable to match their opponent’s ferocity on the battlefield, deliberately destroyed much of their worlds, rendering them useless to the advancing invaders. Unfortunately for the Federation, these tactics were only partially effective and led to a major shakeup in the leadership of Skye.

After almost two years of fairly consistent advances on both flanks, the Combine suffered a major defeat on the planet Meachem, stopped its progress. Shortly thereafter, a devastating sneak raid against a massive Combine supply depot on Vega severely depleted munitions and materiel for the southern flank’s forces, halting its progress more or less permanently.

Some three years later, Robert Kurita was among those who signed the Ares Conventions in June 2412. These new codes of conduct for “limited engagements” opened a whole new chapter on war within the inner Sphere.

Robert And Parker Kurita

Many historians agree that, had Robert Kurita lived longer, he might have become skilled at conducting the intricacies of a strategic war. However, the young Coordinator was demonstrative, impetuous, and hottempered-not ideal traits in a leader of men. His behavior was his undoing in many instances, for he could rarely keep a clear head in a tight situation. The cold-blooded murder of Werner Von Rohrs, however justified, was only a single, vivid example of this side of his nature.

Robert’s children also inherited his “strength of will.” His eldest son, 17-year-old Jason, was killed in a duel in 2418, the victim of his own lover’s quarrel.

Robert’s hot temper probably led to his demise. In December 2412, he fell to an assassin’s bullet. Though it was never proved, many court followers believed that Robert’s sister, Marika, had hired the assassin to avenge Robert’s murder of her lover, Werner Von Rohrs.

Parker Kurita, Robert’s younger brother, was born in deep space between New Samarkand and Benjamin in 2380. He became the Fifth Coordinator of the Draconis Combine in 2412, after the assassin put a bullet through his brother’s brain. A weak leader by Kurita standards, Parker did little more than maintain the status quo while he reigned. Robert’s strong personality had completely dominated the younger brother, who had obeyed Robert’s every whim. When Robert died, Parker continued to behave accordingly, scrupulously attempting to follow his predecessor’s will. When in doubt, he did nothing at all.

Turmoil And Treachery

There is always something to upset the most careful of human calculations.

—Ihara Saikahu, 1642-1693


It’s not the people who are freely called ‘bastards’ that worry me; it’s those few who are that make me very, very nervous. Never trust a genuine bastard. You don’t know where he’s been.

—attributed to Martin McAllister

He who complies with the ways of the world may be impoverished thereby; he who does not appears deranged. Wherever one may live, whatever work one may do, is it possible even for a moment to find a haven for the body or peace for the mind?

—Kamo no Chomei, 1153-1216

During 2421 and 2422, both major lines of the Kurita family suffered a series of treasonous and corrupting reverses. Coincidentally, illegitimate offspring were responsible for the misfortune of both clans. As a result, the Kurita family despises, to this day, the idea of bastard children in its bloodline.

Nihongi Von Rohrs, progeny of Marika Kurita’s relationship with Werner Von Rohrs, grew up under the cloud of his origin. Raised mostly in secret, he learned of and came to hate Coordinator Robert Kurita, the man who had killed his father. Although Robert was assassinated in 2412, Nihongi still sought revenge, settling on a guiltless but helpless target: Parker Kurita. After Saigo Kurita’s battlefield death in 2419, Nihongi realized he was the eldest surviving male in the New Samarkand Kurita bloodline. This made him next in line after the incumbent Coordinator, even though he was a mere whoreson.

Nihongi decided to act on this. After serving in several lowgrade House units, he made friends with some ambitious and greedy officers. His promises of high positions persuaded them to assist him in a coup against Parker Kurita. One dark evening in March, 2421, elements of another unit replaced the Kurita Household Guard. The next morning, Nihongi was Coordinator, and Parker was executed with speedy dispatch. Several of Nihongi’s accomplices joined Parker after they inquired about Nihongi’s promises for promotion.

Nihongi possessed a tremendous instinct for selfpreservation, but also suffered from a healthy paranoia. After eliminating some of his less-reliable colleagues, he ensured his position by immediately exiling all immediate members of the Kurita line. It is not known why Nihongi chose exile rather than execution for his enemies. It may be that he wanted them to live and know that he reigned-in his mind, and perhaps in their own, a fate worse than death.

Philip Kurita, a potential successor, remained in hiding for almost four years. He was eventually rooted out in late 2425 and forced to join his brothers in exile. Von Rohrs also had a perverse sense of the macabre. In 2421, he secretly sold his mother’s youngest sister, Lenore Kurita into slavery. After 15 years of unspeakable treatment, she was killed for sport by her new owner, a minor “noble” of the Periphery.

Having removed all potential rivals, Nihongi began a series of intensive and bloody purges. These mass executions cut deeply through many levels of Combine society, including the military and mercantile leaders, and created economic instability and near-anarchy.

On the other side of the Draconis Combine, another story was unfolding. Daniel Sorenson, like Nihongi Von Rohrs, also grew up stigmatized by his unacceptable origin. Despite this, his mother Oma Kurita raised him at the court on Rasalhague, where Daniel remained until he was 18. At that time, Oma’s alcoholism had progressed so far that she could no longer care for herself, let alone anyone else. After his mother’s death, Daniel left Rasalhague and joined the local military. He did this partly to learn more about the universe beyond his homeworld, but mostly to get out from under Jason Kurita’s baleful gaze. He also realized that without his mother’s intervention on his behalf, his life was in danger on Rasalhague.

Meanwhile, Jason Kurita, Governor of the Rasalhague Military District, had been continuing his tyrannical rule since 2375. He was alternately bitter and despondent over the deaths of his father and family, which he called “acts of terrorism.” Daniel’s mere existence provided Jason with a daily reminder of the hated Sorenson clan.

He never referred to Daniel as a nephew, and always called him ‘that trash of sub-humanity,” or something even less complimentary. For their part, Jason’s own family hated and despised him for his depravity as much as his subjects hated and feared him.

As Daniel traveled through the Principality of Rasalhague on his duty tours, he was relieved to be free of the insulated world of Jason Kurita’s court. Here, among the people, he could see the true effects of the dictator whose food he had shared. Daniel witnessed torturings, physical and psychological indignities, and the gradual destruction of the Rasalhagians’ morale. With his background, he was always sensitive to the emotions of others, and he could not allow innocent civilians to endure much more. Thoughts of treason entered his mind.

When Nihongi Von Rohrs made his move on New Samarkand, Jason followed his depraved instincts and supported the usurper, even sending troops to fight against loyal Draconis forces. These actions shocked Daniel and inspired him finally to act against the demented Governor. Upon learning of Daniel’s intentions, cousins Toshiro and Hanako Kurita (twin sons of Adam Kurita) came to his support in a revolution against Jason Kurita.

As word spread, the rebellion grew in size and popularity. As a result, Jason recalled his troops from New Samarkand, and a miffed Nihongi removed him from office. While guards forcibly removed Jason from the throne room, the compassionate Daniel offered him one last chance to accept exile. Before several stunned revolutionaries, Jason pulled a slug thrower and aimed it at his nephew. Luckily, Daniel’s reflexes proved superior, and he killed his uncle and ex-Governor in selfdefense.

After Jason’s death, Daniel Sorenson seized control of the Principality of Rasalhague, assuming the title of Lord. His goals were to end all oppression of its citizens and to offer opposition to the Von Rohrs, who now controlled the position of Combine Coordinator. As a whole, the populace of the Principality accepted him as their rightful leader, the son of their former High Chieftain, Jan Sorenson.

Though Daniel’s efforts to remove Nihongi Von Rohrs were unsuccessful, the new Lord of Rasalhague received great popular support as a leader, and allied his own troops with military units loyal to the Kurita family line. A competent and vigorous leader, Daniel Sorenson died in a mountain climbing accident in 2487, at the age of 110.

Ironically, Daniel Sorenson, the illegitimate offspring of a one-time terrorist clan, proved more faithful to House Kurita than Jason Kurita, a pure blood relation.

The Changing Nature Of War

LENNOX: Since approximately the mid-19th century, the relative offensive firepower of trained, individual soldiers increased exponentially, while their defensive ability increased only linearly, at best. It thus became harder and harder to survive the intensity of conventional combat, a problem that grew even worse by the 25th century. Every state that fielded an army realized that it had the potential to wipe out entire populations, even without using chemical, biological, or radioactive weapons.

Full-state warfare could—and would—destroy civilian populations, industrial targets, delicately balanced economies, and entire cultures. Mankind was thus faced with two choices. What were they? Anyone?

KY-TANG: One: Cease to fight wars entirely-with all the sociological implications that would have. Or two: Somehow to make wars less dangerous.

LENNOX: And which did man choose?

PALMERSTON: He chose to make wars less dangerous.

LENNOX: Right. In their typical wisdom, the powers-that-be opted for the second alternative.

Granted, the Ares Conventions drastically changed the rules of war. After they were enacted by all ten major political signatories, battles were less a life-and-death struggle of resources and men, and more a game of maneuver, minimal casualties, and surrender or withdrawal. In some cases, both parties agreed upon secluded battlefields—at safe distances from factories and population centers—before the fighting actually began.

A few commanders even went so far as to draw up lists of ‘victory conditions,’ detailed guidelines for determining the winner of a particular engagement. Many conditions dealt with one side reaching a particular objective, either side suffering a certain percentage of casualties, or other battle-related details. After one or more victory conditions were met, the battle was declared over, and both sides could regroup, advance, withdraw, or surrender, based on their relative successes. When used, these parameters often led to temporary gains or losses in territory, transferal of booty, or other substantial assets in exchange for a hard-fought but relatively bloodless victory. Sometimes, an entire planet might even change hands. Days later, the next battle might completely reverse the previous battle’s outcome.

LI-PO: But what if the commanders refused to abide by the victory conditions?

LENNOX: My best guess is that the commanders would not cheat, because they loved the game of war too much. Admittedly, it makes little sense, but then, war seldom does. One warning: you should never examine the military mind or its motives too closely. There is an inherent degree of insanity present.

Anyway, literally hundreds of these small-scale skirmishes, which some officers refer to as scenarios, were fought between the major states during the century-and-a-half Age of War. These mock wars did preserve the continuity of each major state, permitted populations to grow, and allowed various societies, cultures, and civilizations to thrive.

The Conventions also affected the fundamental concepts of war. The degree of strategic skill needed to win battles attained new heights. Commanders had not only to fight, but to be victorious in compliance with very structured parameters. War was no longer a vocation for the unskilled or undisciplined. Indeed, after the introduction and widespread acceptance of the BattleMech, war was also no longer for the technologically untrained. War had become complicated, more so than in any period of Terra’s past. Now, can anyone tell me what all these battles of the Age of the War accomplished?

NORDWALD: They encouraged esprit de corps among members of the various armies?

LENNOX: That’s absolutely true, but totally irrelevant. War, even in its most insane capacity, has more merit than to give a small percentage of the population a feeling of false superiority over the remainder of the population.

In practical terms, however, all these battles accomplished almost nothing. No Major Political alliances were permanently formed or broken, few appreciable gains in territory were sustained, and no massive military superiorities were achieved. In retrospect, the battles only vented man’s own violent instincts through a partially controlled and ostensibly safer alternative to total war and utter destruction. That is the only good that may be said for them.

However, one must not presume that even these limited battles were without some cost. Valuable and highly skilled men-both military and civilian—died, expensive machinery was destroyed, and even the most insular of battles had a negative impact on the surrounding countryside. The Ares Conventions simply minimized the overall effects of war and kept casualty totals in the thousands, instead of the millions or tens of millions who might have otherwise died.

Even so, the Age of War had a direct impact on the Draconis Combine’s ruling families. Who can name an important personage who was a casualty of the Age of War?

MYCHALS: How about Saigo Kurita?

LENNOX: Correct. Robert and Parker Kurita’s brother Saigo was killed in battle in 2419. Also, three decades later, Lord of Rasalhague Daniel Sorenson’s’ only son Erik was killed in combat in 2449. Though Saigo’s death had little impact on New Samarkand politics, the loss of Erik forced Daniel to retain the Lordship longer than he had originally intended.

Every major state leader signed the Ares Conventions, although not every leader agreed that they were needed. In particular, Robert Kurita of the Draconis Combine found the provisions to be demeaning, too restrictive, and simply not bloody enough. The Ares Conventions did take some of the horror out of war and made it an acceptable substitute for interstellar diplomacy and peaceful relations. Perhaps it was for their own good reasons, but Robert Kurita and his Combine armies did abide scrupulously by the provisions, Kurita still possessed the right to execute traitorous citizens of his own domain, however. Therefore, he immediately made violation of the Conventions a treasonable offense, for which the punishment would be severe. Whether it was bloodlust or honor that motivated this law, Kurita invoked it often and well.

Does anyone know Robert Kurita’s ulterior motive for signing the Ares Conventions?

POLTER: So he would not lost face with his own people?

LENNOX: Reread your House Kurita history. Kurita would lose more face at home by signing than by not signing. No, he had a more urgent reason. If he refused to sign, the united forces of the signatories would go to war against the Draconis Combine. As bloodthirsty as he may have been, he knew his own forces could not defeat the entire Inner Sphere at one time.

By the mid-25th century, the BattleMech became a frontline weapon system, gradually replacing more conventional equipment. This change revolutionized the technological aspects of warfare as much as the Ares Conventions affected the strategic and tactical aspects. It also made it easier to abide by the Ares Conventions. Fewer combatants were needed, which invited fewer potential violations. Military training evolved into a proud tradition, with intensive preparation required to become a skilled warrior. Though regular foot infantry and armor would continue to have their secondary roles, the concept of ‘quality of manpower’ forever replaced the advantages of sheer numbers.

LI-PO: That explains why it is such an honor to be a MechWarrior.

LENNOX: That may be so, but as far as I’m concerned, becoming a soldier—especially by volunteering—is an incredibly stupid way to live... or die.

—From a lecture in pre-League military history, Precentor Shandar Lennox instructing

The Von Rohrs Dynasty

When the 27-year-old Nihongi Von Rohrs assumed the title of Coordinator, many of his subjects were stunned. It was true that Nihongi was next in line for the throne, but everyone whispered, “What horrors might befall the Draconis Combine with such a leader?” They would learn the answer perhaps all too soon.

Unlike Nihongi’s predecessors, who controlled only the political and military elements within the Combine, the new Coordinator wanted total economic control of House Kurita. He had competent corporate and mercantile leaders removed and executed, and replaced them with inept but loyal friends and stooges. Political turmoil would have resulted, but the new tyrant dealt in the harshest possible manner with the slightest criticism from any quarter. Entire families, from grandparents through grandchildren, were executed if a single family member spoke out against the Von Rohrs government.

Where Robert Kurita had called for an execution or torture perhaps once a month, these now became a daily occurrence. Yet, by all the rules of dynasty set down by Shiro Kurita and a century of ongoing tradition, Nihongi was the Combine’s rightful ruler. Until an eligible Kurita descendent emerged, Von Rohrs would remain at the helm, and would command obedience from his subjects. Of course, scientific testing had evolved to such a degree that genetic tissue analyses could prove or disprove any claims of ancestry, and so there would be no problem in verifying any claim for reestablishment of the Kurita line. Thus, the people of the Combine could do nothing but wait, endure, and let time heal the wounds. They only hoped that one of the exiled Kuritas would step forward... soon. Any other drastic action, such as an attempted assassination or efforts to stage an open election, might mean the collapse of the dynastic form of government. That course of action was simply unthinkable.

Von Rohrs did reaffirm the House Kurita policy of territorial advances against the Lyran Commonwealth. He also made occasional plans to attack the Federated Suns, which some described as “a dangerous supernova on the veriest edge of the Draconis Combine.” For the most part, however, the previous House Kurita leadership agreed that House Steiner (and its predecessors) presented less formidable opposition. Moreover, a two-front war would still be far too risky and likely to fail disastrously. Even Von Rohrs, in his usurpation, agreed to leave House Davion more or less untouched, except for a diversionary raid now and then.

As far as it mattered to the average Combine citizen, the 89-year-long Von Rohrs reign may have been under a single leader, or a dozen different ones. From the standpoint of policy, the period was a single, bloody blur, with no tangible changes from one Coordinator to the next. Even court observers had difficulty determining exactly who was in charge or when one man’s term ended and another’s began.

This was because Nihongi stopped using his own name within a year of his accession. Throughout the rest of the Von Rohrs period, the Coordinators of that family went only by their surname. Always fearful of possible retaliation, Nihongi and his descendants lived out their lives in the strictly guarded seclusion of the New Samarkand palace grounds.

The court chain of command during the reign of the Von Rohrs must have been convoluted and confusing. Presumably, subordinates would report to their superiors, who would, in turn, report to theirs. After passing through three, four, or even five levels of administration, a message might reach one of a half-dozen persons who actually knew and met regularly with the incumbent Coordinator. Or, at least, someone whom they thought was the Coordinator.

After Nihongi’s own death, this was especially true. Kozo Von Rohrs was never seen in public, and his closest aides were the only persons in the entire Inner Sphere who knew what he looked like! For perhaps as long as 60 years, the subjects in the Draconis Combine could have met their Coordinator on the surface of any world and no one would have recognized him. Yet the paranoia continued.

To the best of anyone’s knowledge, Nihongi ruled from 2421 until mid-2400s. It is not known how many offspring he had. One son, Kozo, is believed to have ruled next, from approximately mid-2450 until the late 2460s or early 2470s. Kozo apparently had several sons and daughters; Yama served next, until the mid- to late-2500s. Finally, Kruger Von Rohrs (Yama’s brother?) led the Draconis Combine as its Ninth Coordinator, until his own death during the successful McAllister Rebellion.

Battles In The Age Of War

Fear is our most powerful weapon—and a heavy regiment of BattleMechs is a very close second.

—attributed to Kozo Von Rohrs


All’s fair in love and war.

—Francis Edward Smedle, 1818-1864


Though Coordinator Parker Kurita initiated few new policies, he did carry out some of the operations his deceased brother Robert had left unfinished. This included a successful campaign and seizure of the Lyran Commonwealth world of St. John in 2414. In 2340, the Federation of Skye, the Tamar Pact, and the Protectorate of Donegal had united to form a single government called the Lyran Commonwealth. While the new Lyran government was attempting to set its affairs in order, the Draconis Combine forces only added to its internal troubles by capturing the resource-rich world of St. John. In 2417 and 2418, House Steiner launched counterattacks to retake the planet, both of which were disastrously unsuccessful.

Members of the Von Rohrs dynasty, though extremely secretive, maintained an obvious enough foreign policy. The new ruling family intended to attack weak lines in House Steiner’s political leadership, while “annexing” worlds that were inadequately or incompetently defended. By 2445, approximately one-fifth of the worlds in the former Tamar Pact now belonged to the Draconis Combine, a significant accomplishment.

After learning about the development and manufacture of the Terran Hegemony’s BattleMechs in the 2430s and ’40s, the Von Rohrs agreed that the Draconis Combine needed its share of these formidable new weapons. House Steiner had already raided a Terran BattleMech facility, seized the necessary computer data, and begun to set up their own factories. Combine officials agreed that it was time to pay the Steiners in their own coin by stealing BattleMech technology from one of their facilities. In 2461, the Combine launched a sneak raid against the Steiner BattleMech facility on Coventry. The success of this attack now gave the Draconis Combine the technology to design and manufacture its own fearsome ‘Mechs.

After every major House had acquired this new technology, h was clear that House Steiner’s narrow but tangible lead in military science could not last. Though they had produced BattleMechs several years before the Draconis Combine had, that margin of superiority would likely vanish within the next several years. Steiner leaders, including General Kevin Kelswa, Duke of Tamar, decided to act while they still maintained some advantage.

Thus did the Lyran Commonwealth launch its offensive against the Draconis Combine in 2463. When it looked as though the target would be the hotly disputed world of St. John, the Von Rohrs stripped border garrisons of their troops in order to fortify planets in the target area. The Steiner forces proved to have other targets in mind, however seizing Skondia and Nox in short order. Taken by surprise, the Combine forces at first offered little resistance, but their defense became more tenacious as the Steiner offensive progressed.

By 2465, the battle had shifted to the planet Caldrea, with House Steiner still on the offensive, but just barely. A combination of exhausted attackers, worn equipment, determined defenders, and extremely rough terrain created an impenetrable defense. In desperation, the Lyran Commonwealth used tactical nuclear weapons, barbaric even by the Combine’s bloodthirsty standards. House Steiner did capture Caldrea, however.

A variety of internal problems continued to plague the Lyran Commonwealth. By 2468, their offensive into Combine space had stalled, and they withdrew most of their forces while garrisoning the worlds they had taken. BattleMechs also began entering service in Combine combat units during this period, readjusting the balance of power. Over the next three years, the Combine attempted to retake the planets they had just lost, but House Steiner’s forces maintained their expertise in BattleMech tactics and successfully held their ground.

The first full-scale ‘Mech-versus-’Mech battle took place on Nox in 2475, as an attacking Kurita Sword of Light regiment met Steiner occupation forces. Though this Kurita attack was neither successful nor strategically significant, it marked a major turning point in armed warfare. The few confrontations in military history that compare to it include the Monitor-vs.-Merrimack engagement in March, 1862 and the Battle of Coral Sea in May, 1942.

Political confusion continued to hinder the armies of the Lyran Commonwealth, as each of the three original powers sought to build up their own ‘Mech force. The Von Rohrs took advantage of the internal dissension in the Commonwealth. During the last two decades of the 25th century, all Combine worlds lost in 2463 offensive were returned to the banner of the dragon.

Diplomatic Mission To Rasalhague

McALLISTER: I wish to thank you, Lord Sorenson, for your most gracious audience and excellent hospitality.

BLAINE SORENSON: Quite all right, Captain. I would not have it said that we were rude, even to those with whom we have political differences. Now that our meal is finished, why don’t you tell us something of your background and how you came to be chosen for this assignment? I’m sure you much have had many exciting adventures.

McALLISTER: I think you flatter me, sir. However, as you request. I was born on the planet Echo in July 2474

ILLIYANA SORENSON [interrupting]: So young, yet so important! Please tell me, what is your birthday, Captain?

McALLISTER [smiles]: Please call me Martin. My birthday is the 4th; just a few days ago.

ILLIYANA: How wonderful. Father, may we have a party for Martin?

BLAINE: We shall see, daughter. [To McAllister] What was Echo like?

McALLISTER: It always seemed a backwater world to me, and so I was glad to leave. Anyway, I joined in the army when I was 15.

BLAINE: Kurita takes them that young?

McALLISTER [chuckles]: No, sir. I confess I lied about my age. I served for two years before I acquired a BattleMech. What with the war and all, I was a lance commander before long. My superiors seemed to think I was a natural-born leader. Because my service record was good, they made me a captain.

BLAINE: And how did you come to Lord Von Rohrs’ attention?

McALLISTER: Earlier this year, I met with a senior representative of Lord Von Rohrs on New Samarkand. I had proven my loyalty to the Draconis Combine, and we talked on numerous occasions. Finally, I was given the chance of becoming the Draconis Combine’s emissary to the Principality of Rasalhague. They reassigned me, and here I am.

BLAINE: What is Lord Von Rohrs like?

McALLISTER: I’ve never actually met him, sir. I’ve only dealt through his representatives.

BLAINE: Well, as I said earlier, we would flatly refuse to accept a lasting peace by uniting with the Draconis Combine under the Von Rohr’s dragon banner. Other possibilities for peaceful solutions may yet exist. If you wish, remain here on Rasalhague for a time. Visit our land and learn something of its charms. Meanwhile, this is my family. My wife Diana, Illiyana, my elder daughter; Katherine, my younger daughter. This is Jarod, my son.

ILLIYANA [bows while remaining seated, and smiles]: Martin.

McALLISTER [stares at her, then blushes]: Illiyana.

—From conversations at a Principality of Rasalhague State dinner, 9 July 2494. Guest of Honor: Captain Martin McAllister, diplomatic envoy from the Draconis Combine, Rasalhague Government Archives

McAllister And The Rebellion

Some historians have credited Illiyana Sorenson as the driving force behind the McAllister Rebellion. Though the connection may seem peculiar, her charm and presence did have an undeniable and immediate effect on Martin McAllister. Indeed, it is unlikely that Martin would ever have entertained the notion of attempting to overthrow the Von Rohrs had it not been for that fateful dinner party in July 2494.

Illiyana was a mere 15 years old at the time, but she was fully a woman in terms of poise and physical beauty. Forgetting duty, the Draconis Combine, and the Von Rohrs, Martin McAllister fell madly in love and remained on Rasalhague to spend every waking moment with her. In fact, he stayed for two full months before he reluctantly admitted his predicament to her father. Blaine was more than a little surprised, but consented to give his blessings to their marriage, provided Martin submitted to genetic analysis. Martin agreed.

For the time being, the actual results of the test remained a secret between Blaine and Martin, and Illiyana Sorenson married him during a private ceremony in October 2494. After becoming close friends, McAllister and the elder Sorenson began making plans to reunite the Draconis Combine with Rasalhague, but also to oust the Von Rohrs tyrants and return rule to the Kurita line. Meanwhile, Martin himself had to return to New Samarkand and report that his mission was unsuccessful. Martin’s new wife remained on Rasalhague.

Except for occasional diplomatic visits to Rasalhague, Martin McAllister spent the next seven years serving at New Samarkand in various capacities. Though his trips were ostensibly for further contacts with Lord Blaine Sorenson, they were, in reality, secret visits with his wife, about whom he had never told the Von Rohrs.

These years were punctuated by a great joy and a great tragedy for Martin McAllister. In February 2496, Illiyana gave birth to their daughter, Siriwan McAllister, and Martin managed to be on Rasalhague at the time. Illiyana, herself only 17, took instantly to the role of a doting mother and gave the infant all her care. Unfortunately, Illiyana drowned in a waterskiing accident in April 2499, when her daughter was only three years old. Martin did not discover her fate until he arrived from the Draconis Combine in August. Realizing Siriwan’s importance, Blaine took over her care, raising her with his own daughter Zarabeth, who was born only a few months later.

Devastated by the loss of Illiyana, Martin threw himself into his work. By 2501, the Von Rohrs had given up on a peaceful resolution with the Principality of Rasalhague, and Martin was transferred back to a military assignment along the Combine/ Rasalhague border. He secretly passed information to Blaine Sorenson, who was slowly gathering and repositioning the Rasalhague forces in preparation. Another seven years passed as Martin continued to rise through the ranks, making powerful friends within the military and at court.

With the secret help of some of these friends, Martin McAllister helped to maneuver the imprisonment of Coordinator Yama Von Rohrs in 2508, leaving Yama’s brother Kruger with the title of Coordinator. Kruger knew that Martin had been instrumental in his own promotion, but he did not know in what capacity. Even then, Martin had still not been introduced to the Von Rohrs family. Meanwhile, all available Rasalhague forces were poised for a diversionary attack against the Draconis Combine, if necessary. After displacing Yama, Martin’s own political influence skyrocketed. He continued to make more friends and more secret agreements.

In mid-2510, Blaine Sorenson launched a powerful, but very brief, assault into the Combine. The reports of enemy advances prompted Kurita commanders to send units from all over the Combine, including half the Household Guard, to repel the attackers. By November, security at the palace on New Samarkand was at its lowest state of awareness since the Von Rohrs took over.

Late that month, Martin McAllister, now Colonel of the Household Guard, made his move. Martin, Blaine Sorenson’s elder son Jarod, and several score Kurita-loyal Household Guards entered the palace and opened fire. Unsure of many individual’s identities, McAllister’s forces took no prisoners in a very quick but intense firelight. The entire Von Rohrs family and most of the servants were wiped out to the last woman and child. Even Yama, cruelly imprisoned in the palace dungeon, received the same treatment; his death brought an end to the Von Rohrs line. Jarod was also killed in the fighting, the price in blood that fate extracted from Blaine Sorenson.

Hours later, after seizing the planet’s communications facility, Martin McAllister publicly broadcast the results of his genetic analysis taken on Rasalhague 16 years earlier. He was, without doubt, a direct blood descendent of Shiro Kurita, and his sequestered daughter Siriwan would most likely be his heir. The Draconis Combine would once again be ruled by a Kurita!

Arrangements were made for a meeting of great pomp and ceremony on the centrally located world of Pesht. Rasalhague’s Lord Blaine Sorenson became Duke of Rasalhague, and the two powers were formally united. Though some degree of mistrust would continue between them throughout the coming centuries, h was an important step toward peace in the quadrant. Perhaps more important, it gave the Draconis Combine a very long and strategically exploitable border with the Lyran Commonwealth.

With the McAllisters ruling the Draconis Combine, an age of relative peace ensued. Though the Combine commanders began a new campaign for conquest, it employed gradual, subtle attacks and psychology as much as it did military hardware. Full-scale battles near the Lyran Commonwealth and the Federated Suns took place only infrequently, leaving the borders fairly quiet. The only significant activity involved an occasional attack along the Periphery frontier. Thus did the Age of War gradually come to an end for the Draconis Combine.

Siriwan McAllister-Kurita Pt 1

Siriwan McAllister-Kurita is the most remarkable woman in Combine history, not just because so few women have played prominent roles in House Kurita but cause she was extraordinary by any standard.

A healthy, bright baby, Siriwan learned to walk at an early age, and was soon getting herself into everything around the palace. Her father was rarely able to visit, but Siriwan always seemed to remember him, and greeted him with a smile. In fact, the frequent separation from her father probably helped Siriwan cope with her mother’s death. At first, the toddler would just say “Mommy be back soon.” It was not until she was five that Siriwan realized that her mother would never return. By this time, her father had been transferred out of his diplomatic position, and so was able to visit Rasalhague even less often. His rare visits were usually spent in endless private conferences with his father in-law. Little Siriwan was present at these meetings, so that she and her father could enjoy each other’s presence. They made her promise to keep her father’s visits a secret, and the girl kept her word. Identifying her beloved father with important secret planning made a deep impression on Siriwan, and helped her keep her own counsel later in the scheming Kurita court.

Life on Rasalhague was pleasant for Siriwan. Blaine Sorenson and his wife Diana had a child, Ariel, who was only a few years younger. Their daughter and granddaughter thus grew up as sisters. An extremely bright, curious child, Siriwan received the best education possible and absorbed a variety of subjects, especially history. The Sorenson family was warm and close, and the court of Rasalhague, while full of intrigues, was far less paranoid than that on New Samarkand. Siriwan McAllister had the most “human” upbringing of any Kurita Coordinator. At the same time, she was always viewed as an outsider. Thus, although Siriwan learned warmth and caring, she remained guarded in one-on-one dealings with people.

After Martin McAllister led a successful coup against the Von Rohrs Coordinator, he sent for his daughter Siriwan to come to New Samarkand to live with him at court. Siriwan was sad to leave her grandparents and home on Rasalhague, but was excited at the prospect of a new life at court. When she arrived on New Samarkand, she found a much different world than she expected. People at court treated her warmly, only when they wanted something from her, which usually was a favor from her father. Although many lords were pleased with the reign of Martin McAllister, others felt threatened by the court outsider and by his daughter, with her Rasalhague accent and odd, friendly manner. Most people saw Siriwan’s overtures of friendliness as manipulation, and the girl found herself quite lonely for companionship on this strange, hot, stifling new world.

Unable to establish close ties with anyone in the court, Siriwan used her position as an outsider to her advantage by watching all court proceedings with a detached air. She studied everything available on the history of the Combine and the Kurita family, and learned how to use her position as the Coordinator’s daughter to get what she wanted out of people. In short, she learned how to play the game.

McAllister told his daughter that she could not succeed him as Coordinator because she was a woman. He recommended that she find a distant Kurita man somewhere, and marry him so that at least her son would become Coordinator. There is some evidence that, when Siriwan turned 18 in 2514, her lady-in-waiting began to research the Kurita family tree to find a suitable mate among young distant relatives.

Before Martin McAllister had made any definite plans for the line of succession, he was murdered by a woman in his bedchamber, leaving no heir but Siriwan. There were no close male Kurita relatives, all Kuritas in the realm were equally far from a claim to the throne. Mostly to avoid a bloody struggle for the throne, the nobles of the court agreed that Siriwan should hold the throne as brevet Coordinator. Siriwan accepted the title with a show of great reluctance, but many nobles were concerned that the young woman actually intended to rule. It was bad enough to have a woman sullying the great Kurita throne, but for her to exercise the power of the Coordinator was unthinkable. Why, they asked, was she not using her talents to their best ends, raising proper heirs to this great seat of power? Even more worrisome, was she not a descendant of the rulers of Rasalhague, raised in the capital of that rebellious realm? When the concerns of the nobles seemed ready to burst into open rejection of Siriwan’s reign, Warren Kurita appeared in court to be decorated for military service.

Warren was the great grandson of Grant Kurita, who was exiled during the Von Rohrs purge. Although he carried the Kurita name proudly, he had never imagined himself inheriting the throne. The only son of an overbearing widow, Warren had devoted himself to military studies. He was not a great leader of men, but he was a fair tactician and had an affinity for the constantly changing BattleMech technology. In fact, he came to New Samarkand to be decorated for work in joint engineering-military projects. He had no reason to suspect that the decoration’s criteria had been specially arranged so that he would be the only man qualified to be so honored.

Siriwan liked the intelligent, quiet, unambitious Warren, and Warren was apparently dazzled by the self-possessed young ruler. They were married a few days after their meeting, and in May, 2515, Warren Kurita was installed as full Coordinator.

Warren slowly settled into his office, learning his way around the court with the help of Siriwan, who was sympathetic to the plight of an outsider suddenly plunged into that pit seething ambitions and hidden agendas. Siriwan was the picture of the helpful, devoted wife, and Warren, who never quite recovered from the sudden transition to Coordinator, depended on her advice. They seemed to get along well, and in February, 2516, three days after his mother’s 20th birthday, Hehiro Kurita was born. At Siriwan’s suggestion, Warren declared Hehiro Heir-Designate at the naming ceremony a week after his birth.

Some members of the court commented That Siriwan seemed cooler to Warren after Hehiro’s birth dismissed it as a new mother’s absorption in her child. Without his wife to guide him in decision-making, Warren seemed droopy and more confused. He wanted his mother to come to the royal palace to help care for Hehiro but Siriwan would have none of it. Instead, she asked the court physician to look at Warren, who seemed to be suffering from “inexplicable depression and disorientation.” The physician agreed that Warren seemed unhappy, but attributed it to the stress of his high office, and suggested a quiet family vacation.

Warren, Siriwan, Hehiro, and a minimal retinue of retainers went to Normandy, a fashionable seaside resort on New Samarkand. There, on February 9, 2517, Warren Kurita died of uncertain causes. Siriwan and a local physician attributed the death to eating bad shellfish. The official coroner’s inquest could not pinpoint a cause of death, and it was officially noted as “mysterious.”

Because Hehiro Kurita was only one year old, Siriwan reluctantly became Regent but was dubbed the 13th Coordinator. Apparently, a woman serving as regent to a male heir was acceptable to the nobles of the court. As Siriwan pointed out, she had more experience in the Coordinator’s office than anyone else in the court.

Siriwan McAllister-Kurita Pt 2

Such pointed comments were the first sign that the Coordinator was more than a grieving widow and doting mother. Although Siriwan continued to formally mourn Warren for the prescribed year, she dropped the “reluctant regent” pose almost immediately.

Taking a firm grasp on the throne, Siriwan would not relinquish her hold for nearly 40 years. She made friends with those lords who seemed amenable and gradually took power away from those who opposed her. Her five years of quiet observation paid off, for she knew the strengths and weakness of the lords of the court, who continued to underestimate her.

Siriwan also took pains to treat the ladies of the court well, suspecting that many of them were the powers behind their husbands, as she had been Warren’s. It would not have been proper for the Coordinator, even a woman Coordinator, to befriend the ladies, but Siriwan was the first Coordinator to lend as ear to what these women had to say. She impressed some with her image as young widow and mother struggling with the burden of rule and others with her position as outspoken, influential woman.

The only gap in the Siriwan’s education was real military experience. Rather then hide this flaw and expose herself to criticism, she admitted her ignorance and tried to surround herself with the best military advisors she could. Instead of leading the Combine into battle situations she could not judge or turning control of the military over to others, Siriwan strove for peaceful solutions to conflicts. The Draconis Combine started few armed conflicts during this time and concentrated its forces to repel any incursion into Combine space.

Siriwan herself would not negotiate with other leaders, but assembled a canny ambassadorial staff to achieve the results she wanted. According to one observer, she had developed a style of leadership based on “a steely eye, an acid tongue and an ear that did not hear what she did not want to hear.” No one in court wanted to face humiliation before this small, iron-spined woman. What she wanted, she almost invariably got. One of her favorite tactics was asking the “pre-answered question”; for example, “Who is accompanying the weapons shipment? rather than “Will the weapons be shipped?

Siriwan taught Hehiro the ways of court as she herself had learned them. When he was still too young to understand fully what was going on, Hehiro sat in on sensitive meetings, soaking up the atmosphere. Hehiro had tutors for every academic discipline, but only his mother taught him political science. He absorbed from her the preference for negotiation over physical combat and the use of both subtlety and bluntness.

Possessing his father’s temperament, Hehiro could never adopt his mother’s abrupt manner, which had earned her the whispered nickname of “The dragon lady.” He was not weak, but preferred to issue requests in urgent whispers rather than by his mother’s style of often unanswerable demands.

Hehiro was intelligent, able to grasp the lessons of history and apply them to the Draconis Combine, but Siriwan detected in him an inability to believe the worst. Trust and optimism are fine qualities in a youngster, but a monarch, they should be tempered with a realistic eye. “Hehiro,” said his mother in her journal, “had to be hit on the head with a dead fish” before he would realize that someone was plotting against him. Siriwan wanted a position where she could watch over Hehiro, and the only possible position was on the throne. She stepped down as Coordinator when Hehiro was 40, but remained an active advisor to Hehiro until his death.

A Female Heir

My father, Martin McAllister, became the Tenth Coordinator in 2510, after he executed the entire Von Rohrs line. He may have been a vain man, but he had earned the right. Though he died young (only 41), he had enjoyed life to the fullest, and won the love and respect of his people. In April 2515, he was murdered in his sleep by a female assassin.

Father’s sudden and untimely death created problems among Draconis Combine nobles because my father had left no male heir. My maternal grandfather, Blaine Sorenson, was popular among his own people of Rasalhague, but the other Military District Governors certainly did not trust him, nor did the rest of the Combine. Thus, he was ruled out.

Someone had to take over. I think a handful of nobles thought they could install me and then push through their own plans with little opposition. The end result was that they named me “brevet” Coordinator. I was quite young at the time, only 19, but not as naive as they expected. Moreover, the other nobles did not trust me much. The Draconis Combine had been ruled as a patriarchy for two centuries, and so having a female leader was almost beyond the comprehension of most nobles. Women may have had their place in the Combine, but it was not in any position of high influence. The nobility were not too fond of having “a daughter of Rasalhague” on the throne either. In fact, efforts to remove me from office came on the heels of my accession.

If Father had sired a son, I never would have become Coordinator, and if Warren Kurita had not emerged, I probably could not have stayed at court. Warren was the great-grandson of exiled Grant Kurita, and he happened to show up on New Samarkand “in the nick of time,” to use an old cliché. There have been stories that I sent notices throughout the Draconis Combine in search of a suitable Kurita-line spouse. A fascinating tale, I’m sure. We married within days, and, five weeks later, Warren succeeded me as the Twelfth Coordinator in May 2515. The nobles seemed satisfied, and political unity was restored to House Kurita.

No longer tied down to the stressful duties of Coordinator, I settled into a very domestic existence. Warren and I had a very good personal relationship, and our son Hehiro was born in February 2516. Early the next year, though, Warren came down with a peculiar ailment and died after only a few days. Court physicians attributed the death to “mysterious causes,” and some actually suspected me causing Warren’s death. I simply ignored the rumors.

Because my infant son was a legitimate heir to the Kurita line, no one opposed my ruling as regent, although I was not terribly enthused. After all, I was only 20 and wanted to enjoy life outside court. Knowing my duty, however, I accepted my destiny. Just as my father would have done.

—From Lords I Have Known, by Siriwan McAllister-Kurita, Carp of Truth Press, 2628

Star League Era

As the people of the Inner Sphere were becoming battle-weary, Terra knew it was simply a matter of time before the leaders of various states would agree to limited concessions. By the end of the 25th century, impartial Hegemony advisors were being called in sporadically to negotiate situations that would have led to battles only a few decades earlier.

With a dream of human unity greater than just the end of war, Ian Cameron had become leader of the Terran Hegemony in 2549. I n 2551, he served as mediator between the Capellan Confederation and the Free Worlds League in the dispute over control of Andurien. While negotiating this peace treaty, he gained the respect and trust of the two leaders, Terrance Liao and Albert Marik. In 2556, those three powers, the Terran Hegemony, the Capellan Confederation, and the Free Worlds League, signed a secret trade and non-aggression agreement. This pact was Ian Cameron’s first step toward creating a unified Star League.

For the next 13 years, Cameron secretly negotiated with the leaders of the other states in the Human Sphere, hoping for treaties between Terra and all the other states as the next major step toward unified human space. Eventually, the Draconis Combine, the Federated Suns, and the Lyran Commonwealth signed similar pacts with Terra, indicating a willingness to join in a Star League. The leaders of the powers along the Periphery would not be swayed to join with Terra, and never became part of the Star League.

After Hehiro Kurita, the last leader to agree, signed the Treaty of Vega in 2569, agreeing to join in a Star League, leaders of all six states (the Terran Hegemony, the Draconis Combine, the Federated Suns, the Lyran Commonwealth, the Capellan Confederation, and the Free Worlds League) met for two years to hammer out an agreement that would be the charter of the Star League.

In 2571, the Star League was formally established as a new, unified entity. Ian Cameron was recognized as First Lord of the Star League and arbiter of League foreign policy. The League Articles granted each of the other five leaders a seat on the High Council, autonomy over all domestic policy matters, and official sanction of the existing line of succession. Most importantly, all now had free access to the Terran military research apparatus.

This is not to say there was no skepticism regarding the Star League’s chances. Many felt that the fundamental differences between the warring states ran too deep and that too much blood had flowed too freely for a long-lasting, peaceful resolution. Questions about freedom of trade were raised. Questions about what loyalty to this new league meant were raised. Now that everyone was on the same side, against what (or whom) could the Star League fight? The only remaining target that could unite all parties in a common cause existed far beyond the Inner Sphere, in the vastness of the Periphery. These far distant realms did not want to give up their autonomy by joining the Star League. Thus was born the Reunification War.

The Treaty Of Vega

It is resolved whereby the parties who sign and come into accordance with the provisions and conditions of this treaty shall be jointly agreed to abide by the provisions and conditions contained therein.

Condition 1) At which time all parties and States to be concerned have become signatory members, and within a reasonable administrative period not to exceed five years immediately thereafter, the existence of a new hegemony will be created and recognized. This new hegemony, to be known as the Star League, will:

A) consist of founding parties and States, or any subsequent parties and States who accept a bonafide offer to become signatories,

B) recognize, individually and equally, all parties and States as Member-Federates within the Star League.

Condition 2) The signatory members of this Star League shall, as their first concern, while chartering this League, provide for the rulership and control of said League in a manner agreeable to all. This rule may include, but is not bound by this treaty to require:

A) a single administrator of the Star League, and

B) a body of ruling persons representing each founding Member-Federate

Condition 3: The individual ruler of the State now known as the Draconis Combine, and the rulers of other Member-Federate States, shall maintain control over the internal affairs of their separate states, beyond the control of the Star League, within whatever limits are arrived at in the charter of the Star League, including

A) complete autonomy over all matters of policy that in no way exceed the borders of the State over which he and/or his government rules, the definition of such matters as exceed these borders to be arrived at by agreement of all Member-Federates, and

B) preservation of the internal political structure within the borders of that state.

Condition 4: The Member-Federates shall arrive at a mutual agreement of protection and alliance in the case of attack from outside, non-member states, and a formula for negotiation and/or retaliation in the event of attack by one Member-Federate against another for whatever reason.

Condition 5: The individual signers of this agreement shall not, publicly or privately, discuss, disclose, or otherwise reveal or open the contents herein, until such time as the Terran Hegemony representative, Ian Cameron or his heir or assign, shall deem it meet to open the chartering negotiations of the Star League among all signers of such treaties of intent.

Condition 6: If, within two years from this date, no convention or concordance shall be announced whereby a charter for the aforementioned Star League shall commence, or, if no agreement shall be forthcoming from such convention by five years from its commencement date, this treaty of intent shall become null and void.

Signed this August 15, 2569, Standard Terran Calendar

Ian Cameron, Thirteenth Director-General, Terran Hegemony
Hehiro Kurita, Fourteenth Coordinator, the Draconis Combine

[EDITOR’S NOTE: A similar document was also signed by the Lyran Commonwealth (House Steiner), the Federated Suns (House Davion), the Capellan Confederation (House Liao), and the Free Worlds League (House Marik).

Preparations For War

When word came from the Star League in 2577 that there would be a war against the rebellious outworlders, many within the Combine were skeptical that the League would show itself to be that aggressive. It was not until after the First Lord Cameron announced the suspension of the Ares Conventions that interest began to mount. In fact, of all the states, the Combine was alone in its enthusiasm for a good, ail-out confrontation. The Ares Conventions had taken much of the sheer brutality out of combat, and so many in the Coordinator’s inner circle welcomed the opportunity to show their true, ruthless mettle. The leadership of House Kurita did indeed know their history: the people of the Draconis Combine were often at their peak when confronted by a worthy opponent.

Most Combine regiments volunteered for combat assignments to battle areas. Those ordered to remain behind grumbled at drawing dull, but essential, garrison, nobility-protection, and special-operations duties.

The Draconis Combine’s economy had always been among the most isolated in the Successor States. Its nearly constant state of hostility toward neighboring powers did not make for good trade relations, but it did teach the citizens to utilize wisely what they had. Though many Combine worlds were poor in resources, they were particularly well-exploited. What a planet might lack in raw materials, its people made up for in overall efficiency. As soon as the word was confirmed, the economy went into gear for war to a degree not seen since the time of Shiro Kurita’s initial conquest. The shortages of material goods did affect the quality of life to a certain degree, but the essentially stoic Draconians took such hardships in stride.

With the Rim Worlds Republic near one frontier border and the Outworlds Alliance near another, troops from the Draconis Combine had no lack of opportunities for combat. The Reunification War lasted for 20 bloody years, finally ending during 2597. At that time, units from the Lyran Commonwealth captured Terra Prime, the Rim Worlds Republic capital, and Star League forces took the Taurian Concordat capital in the Hyades cluster. Resistance trickled to a standstill, and peace was inevitably declared. For the next century and a half, the Draconis Combine would have little means of venting its aggression; but then, not every story can have a happy ending.

Hehiro Kurita, Peacemaker

Hehiro Kurita was born in 2516 on New Samarkand. The next year, his father died “mysteriously,” leaving only the infant boy as heir to the Combine throne. His mother Siriwan was to rule as regent, which she did for almost 40 years. She did not relinquish the throne until 2556, a few months before Hehiro’s 40th birthday. Even after her son assumed rule, Siriwan continued to be a major, positive influence on his reign and style of leadership. This is not to say that he was totally dominated, however. Indeed, most historians consider Hehiro to have been one of the most influential and capable leaders in the Combine since Shiro Kurita’s reign two and a half centuries earlier. Siriwan may have been a “kingmaker,” but only her son Hehiro could be the king.

Like his noteworthy ancestor Shiro, Hehiro also believed in militant self-reliance and the inherent ideological superiority of his subjects, when compared with any other State in the Human Sphere. However, Hehiro’s judgments were significantly influenced by his mother, herself a strong proponent of peaceful expansion and administration. Being raised by his mother rather than by his father undoubtedly made Hehiro a bit more charming than many Kuritans, but he also possessed her cunning mind and skill at matters of state.

Many questions have been raised as to why Hehiro permitted his mother to act as regent until he was 40 years old. In all honesty, he never wanted the position of Coordinator. He married at the age of 19, and his wife died in childbirth. He spent the next decade raising his son Martin, before remarrying. Some informed sources indicate that Siriwan offered to step down on several occasions, but Hehiro only accepted after Martin turned 20. Sadly, Martin died just two years later in a battle along the Periphery.

A skilled and convincing orator, a just arbiter, and an iron-willed leader, Hehiro constantly strived for his ideals of perfection, and sought means to attain them. He may be most famous for signing the Treaty of Vega in 2569, which made the Draconis Combine a member of Ian Cameron’s brainchild, the Star League. For this, some members of the military and the nobility angrily accused him of trusting his enemies more than his friends. In response, Hehiro only smiled.

In 2577, he backed the Star League on another major issue: the Unification War against the Periphery worlds. Having rejected the Star League’s offer of membership, these outer worlds formed their own alliance to protect their autonomy. A bloody, 20-year-long war between the Star League and the worlds of the Periphery then followed. These two decades would prove to be more costly in human lives than even the 150-year long era known as the Age of War. Despite some political pressure and significant casualties, the general populace threw its support behind Hehiro.

On issues closer to home, he did condemn many of the court nobles for using bribery, favoritism, blood vendettas, and other similar means to promote their own personal interests. While his action drew considerable hostility from those same nobles, it endeared Hehiro to his subjects to a degree rarely seen in the Draconis Combine before or since. This probably explains the popular support he was able to muster for participation in the Reunification Wars. Though he had inherited his position, Hehiro liked to believe that he would have been the people’s choice had they been given one. However romantic this notion, Hehiro was certainly no fool. That he tripled the size of the Household Guard is an illuminating footnote to the story of his reign. It shows that Siriwan managed to teach him the difference between gullibility and trust. This well-protected man would ultimately die by accident in 2591, when he tripped and fell down a long palace staircase, breaking his neck instantly. Witnesses confirm that no one else was near enough to have pushed him, completely ruling out the possibility of foul play. Hehiro’s son Leonard was next in line.

—From “Hehiro The Peacemaker,” a bulletin compiled by ComStar researcher Joanna Green

The Prodigal Son

The accidental death of Lord Hehiro Kurita left a momentary power vacuum in the Combine court. Though his eldest son Leonard was sworn in as the Fifteenth Coordinator, trouble appeared to be brewing at the palace. Hehiro’s mother, Siriwan McAllister-Kurita, led the mourners at Hehiro’s state funeral, with Leonard nowhere to be seen. This was regarded as an ominous note for the beginning of a new reign.

On learning of his father’s death, Leonard had immediately left New Samarkand, and spent the first two months of his reign on a planet-hopping orgy. Court insiders publicly admitted that Leonard had left a note saying he was going to “ensure that worthy descendants of Leonard Kurita the First” would be found in seraglios throughout the Combine. Presumably, he was implementing such a plan.

Leonard’s premeditated excesses and corrupt nature could not have been more unlike his father’s dignified stature. Even before his succession, the middle-aged playboy behaved more like some frontier bindlestiff than a head of State. Once he ruled, he only grew worse, nullifying the political and social advances of his father’s reign.

After Leonard’s return, state gatherings and family events quickly deteriorated into raucous, wild, week-long debauches. District Military Governors, particularly of Pesht and Rasalhague, saw their individual powers increase beyond their wildest dreams. While Leonard spent much of his time in a state of inebriation or unconsciousness, these governors were forced by circumstances to take over direction of the Combine’s participation in the Unification War.

Even during his rare periods of sobriety, Leonard created severe political and military tension for the Draconis Combine, especially during the early and mid-2560s. Among other things, he would order large contingents of Kurita BattleMechs to land on planets near Terra. The MechWarriors had fanciful orders to search for and retrieve any children who looked like their Coordinator.

This use of military force was considered to be a flagrant violation of the Star League Articles. More importantly, it came at a time when the Unification War was still in progress, and the BattleMechs wastefully deployed on Lord Kurita’s mindless operations were of vital importance elsewhere. Leonard paid little attention to increasingly strong warnings from the First Lord of the Star League.

The Unification War finally did end in 2597 (with no thanks to Leonard Kurita), ushering in a new era of peace for the members of the Star League. Large garrisons remained in the Periphery, but most would be withdrawn within a decade. In the meantime, Leonard was not satisfied. In the midst of his drunken rages, he threatened to attack Terra itself. His antics, rarely seen as amusing, now endangered the entire Draconis Combine. As frontier garrisons were reassigned homeward over the next few years, the Star League forces on Terra began to mobilize for possible strikes into the sphere of House Kurita.

Where he had once been merely a family embarrassment and little more than a nuisance, Leonard became a genuine public menace as Coordinator of the Draconis Combine. Elaine Kurita, the younger of his two sisters, became so despondent over the dishonor of her brother’s behavior that she tearfully begged him either to cease or to resign. Leonard, of course, ignored her, and barely noted the fact that Elaine committed seppuku in December 2604. Her suicide disk implicated by name her deranged brother. By February 2605, the overall political situation had deteriorated to the point that some action had to be taken or else the Star League could—and would—attack from along both Steiner and Davion borders.

Within a few weeks, Leonard Kurita contracted one of those “mysterious” ailments that had afflicted certain of his forebears, and he died within a matter of days. Leonard’s son Blaine Kurita became the Sixteenth Coordinator of the Draconis Combine. Aside from Siriwan McAllister-Kurita, still alive at the ripe age of 109, there were few living persons who could recall Warren Kurita’s death from mysterious causes 88 years before.

The McAllisters, Part Two

My great-grandson Blaine was very ill when he became Coordinator in March 2605. Though only 20 years old, he was already in the final stages of cardiac myasthenia gravis. Even with the most advanced life-support technology available, he finally succumbed to the illness in October of that year. This saddened me, for he was a beautiful child and I enjoyed his gentle company, which was such a sharp contrast to his demented father Leonard. That man almost brought down our honored House both through the shame brought on us by his debauchery and because of the trend toward decentralization of the government created by his total lack of political leadership. Blaine’s rule was too brief to reverse either dangerous trend.

I could not stand by and watch the realm and the dynasty fall into ruin, and so I reclaimed the throne immediately after Blaine’s death, becoming the Seventeenth Coordinator. The only reason I took over again was to examine very carefully all the potential candidates for Coordinator, in order to make the best possible selection. But I had forgotten how wonderful is the exhilaration associated with power, a feeling I had not known for half a century. I may have been on the high side of 100, but I could still rule.

The court nobles, however, were far from exhilarated to see me again in power, and so a number of them began meddling into my personal affairs. My ability to resist outside pressures was not as great as formerly, and soon I grew tired of the bickering. After two years, I decided to step down once and for all. At that time, I named my successor.

—From Lords I Have Seen, by Siriwan McAllister-Kurita, Carp of Truth Press, 2628


Siriwan McAllister-Kurita became the only Coordinator in the Draconis Combine’s history to ever hold the position on three separate occasions. After a few months, though, political pressure from court nobles began to build. Though still competent, she was beginning to show her age. Two years into her third “term,” she grudgingly accepted retirement.

Instead of naming her grandson Raymond, as everyone had anticipated, Siriwan chose her granddaughter Sanethia. A quiet woman, Sanethia was seen as more easily maneuvered, giving her venerable grandmother the final laugh. Even when Sanethia was the nominal Coordinator, Siriwan McAllister-Kurita remained the force to reckon with in Kurita court politics. This state of affairs lasted until her death in 2632, at the remarkable age of 136.

The Good Years

I don’t care what other people say. Peace is an unhealthy and unnatural state. It clogs the mind with a pretty pink haze of flowers and waterfalls; it thickens our stomachs with fat; and makes us believe that we are all brothers under the skin. Peace? Why it’s an absolutely deadly condition for a man, especially a warrior.

—From an address by Coordinator Takiro Kurita to the Sun Zhang MechWarrior Academy, March 2695


PEACE AND PROGRESS

The lovely Sanethia Kurita became Lord Kurita (the title applied, regardless of sex) in 2607. A quiet, open-minded woman who was also a serious patron of the arts, Sanethia was an able ruler. Always willing to listen to new ideas, she maintained a firm but gentle grasp over state policy, and often suggested nonmilitary options for resolving disputes. This attitude definitely reflected her grandmother Siriwan’s influence, but Sanethia also initiated efforts to establish a peaceful, yet strong regime.

With the death of Leonard Kurita, the relations between the Draconis Combine and the Star League slowly inched away from the precipice of all-out war. No longer did the besotted Coordinator send Kurita BattleMechs on “heavy reconnaissance forays” into Terran-Member States. Indeed, under Coordinator Sanethia, the Draconis Combine actually paid some reparations to the people whose lives and property the Kurita forces had damaged. Slowly, and with great caution, the Regular Army of the Star League stepped down from its year-long War Alert status.

Yet the relations between the two never really returned to the ; previous level of respectful, if not cordial, relations. In fact, the First Lord of the Star League was becoming aware that he could no longer really trust the leaders of the five other member-states of the League. He therefore ordered the Regular Army High Command to draw up plans for the best way to wage war against each of the five other Houses, should the need arise. The First Lord made it plain that the plans he wanted first were for a strategy against the Draconis Combine. Meanwhile, many Kuritans found the period of peace after the Reunification War entirely too quiet and lacking in the excitement that many, particularly the warriors, had grown to expect from life. Their boredom and nervous energy soon led many soldiers to relieve their frustrations through spontaneous brawls and riots, which were occurring with alarming frequency. Some equally bored and frustrated citizens also joined into these outbursts of mindless fighting and destruction. On Vanern, for example, three entire cities were lost in rioting. Coordinator Sanethia and her ever-present grandmother Siriwan decided that the people needed some large project to occupy their energies and to prevent further damage to the realm.

This “lull,” as the people in the Draconis Combine were calling the peace, was accompanied by an almost League-wide boom in the economy. Technology , now devoted to peaceful research and develop- ment, began to pay huge dividends for the six major Houses of the Inner Sphere. By 2630, hyperpulse generators had cut interstellar communications time lags by more than half. Improved, low-cost water purification systems made it possible to settle worlds ignored during the Exodus, and provided an economic boon to worlds that would no longer be reliant on the Ryan Cartel iceships. By 2700, more than 750 new worlds had been settled. There were also major advances in medical technology, biological engineering, and hydroelectrical engineering. Labor-saving devices pro- vided more freedom and the leisure time to explore the pleasures of luxury goods and the arts. Trading ships traveled the length and breadth of the Inner Sphere, delivering goods and picking up new, exotic wares at each port of call. As the sense of growing prosperity filtered into the most distant reaches of the Star League, the overall quality of life continued to improve. This was to be mankind’s apex, the peak of h o m o sapiens’s accomplishments.

Ars Gratia Artis

Attention: Artists!

Do you work in light, sound, taste, hearing, scent, or balance?

Are you skilled in the ancient arts of painting, dance, architecture, film, theatre, music, or sculpture?

Or have you tried the newest forms of cubing, holoart, light-painting, air-music, sine-sculpting, impressing, null-g ballet, or others even more exotic and original?

If so, you may be eligible for a subsistence grant from the Ministry of Artistic Development, an original program sponsored by Lord Sanethia Kurita of the Draconis Combine. Contact the nearest Ministry office for more details.

—Public service announcement from New Samarkand News Radio, November 2612

Economic Unification

For some members of House Kurita, this period of peaceful coexistence may have been unwelcome. A generally unfriendly and even somewhat xenophobic society, the vast majority of its citizens rarely ventured beyond their own borders except when the Combine was involved in an attack on a neighbor. Until this time, trade with other Houses had been rare, too. When it did occur, the Kuritan merchants’ objectives were absurdly simple: get as much as possible while offering little in return, then get out as fast as possible. The Draconis Combine had been created through military conquest, not peaceful negotiation, and some of its leaders would only comply with the new era of cooperation if forced. It was not only the growth of trade that was ending this time-honored stance. Some other House leaders were even calling for a single form of currency to facilitate trade.

When the issue of a universal currency system first emerged, the Combine’s corporate sector (the percentage not under direct control of the Kurita family) opposed it just as vehemently as the incumbent First Lord of the Star League proposed it. According to the First Lord, a regulated currency would eliminate the current awkward system of barter and the fluctuating exchange rates between interstellar governments.

The Draconian industrialists, however, feared that the new currency would create too close ties and a dangerous interdependence between House Kurita and the other Houses, endangering their own economic power. They also feared the possibility of Star League-induced currency devaluation, which would render all money worthless. In their public statements, however, the corporate heads said only that they questioned the authority of the Star League to advocate such a massive change.

The First Lord continued to press for better political and socioeconomic relations between the League’s member-states. He knew that once trade began to flourish among the six powers, there would be no going back. Adventurous freelance traders were the first to successfully deal in Draconian goods, when they managed to smuggle some across even House Kurita’s well-guarded borders. In their wake, these freelancers left samples of wares available from across the Inner Sphere. These ranged from paints, powders, trinkets, and toys for women and children to raw materials for industry and all varieties of vehicles (civilian, industrial, and military), and heavy equipment and supplies essential for planetary colonization.

As quickly as limited quantities of these high-quality goods were “acquired” and released to the open market, they sold out, with avid cries for more. The Kuritan manufacturers could not resist the lure of fat profits anymore than could their counterparts in the other Houses. The Kurita court still did not favor large-scale export trade with the other powers, but the influx of new wealth changed their minds, too. Within a few years, large cargo Jump- Ships boldly traveled where one-man merchant ships had slyly gone before. Greed replaced the isolationism among the economic and political upper levels of House Kurita. Finally, in 2623, member-states of the Star League voted on the question of a new currency system. Though there were lengthy debates, the system was eventually accepted unanimously.

Once the Kurita family had reversed its traditional position on trade and interstellar relations, few dared to disagree with the new policy. Because of concern that luxury goods from other powers might soften the spartan toughness of their people or that trade with outsiders might expose the House to economic sabotage, the Kuritans still restricted incoming trade somewhat and carefully monitored the effects of intercultural relations on the realm.

The Kurita Style Of Business

The Draconis Combine was never one to shrink from a task. Their efforts to enter into the League-wide economic market showed determination, if not finesse. The case of Waddesdon Traders is a good example of the Kurita style of business.

In 2617, a Sammuel Kestrich and Timth Miyasato bought two near-derelict freighters and boldly proclaimed themselves the Waddesdon Traders. Their first two years were spent carrying chemical fertilizers from their homeworld of Tannil, a Davion world just across the border.

Though business was good, the two wanted to get into bigger-ticket items, but all their attempts were being thwarted by the Kosoan Trading Company, a Davion merchant association with five brand new freighters.

By 2621, the Waddesdon Traders were in deep trouble. Though they had managed to up their fleet to four freighters, the Kosoan Trading Company now had a virtual lock on almost all inter-house trade in that area of the border. Something had to be done, no matter what the cost, no matter what laws might be broken.

In March 2622, an unidentified freighter entered the Shinono system and quietly approached the SS Franklin, a Kosoan freighter. Few noticed the men hidden in the rigging of the unidentified freighter, much less that one of them used a rocket pack to scoot across to the SS Franklin, where he planted an object at the drive-sail junction. The mysterious freighter then moved off, and left the system a day later. An hour after its departure, an explosion rocked the SS Franklin, destroying both the drive core and the sail mechanism. Then came the reports that the SS Franklin was only one of four Kosoan ships to suffer a crippling explosion that very day. The cloud of suspicion quickly settled over the Waddesdon Traders.

The Federated Suns protested these incidents strenuously and demanded that the Waddesdon partners be turned over to them for trial. It was no use, however, for Waddesdon Trader’s audacity had impressed Lord Kurita and his Minister of Economic Exchange and Expansion. The scandal eventually fizzled out, resulting in Waddesdon Traders becoming the largest trading company in its region within two years. Their flagship was a huge, brand-new freighter secretly donated to them by Coordinator Sanethia “in recognition of their business skills.”

—From Trade Relations During the Star League Era, by Precentor Sevir Devasu, Economics Division, ComStar

Pulling Up Roots

In June 2617, Lord Sanethia announced that she was moving the capital of the Draconis Combine from New Samarkand to the planet Luthien. The proclamation came as a shock to people within and without the borders of the Combine. Everyone had expected the Kurita family to remain always on New Samarkand, where they had their roots and where most of their ancestors were buried. Though many criticized the plan, others pointed out its merits. New Samarkand was so distant from the Combine’s border with House Steiner that it would be almost impossible to effectively coordinate a campaign in the event of war. This was logical, but the choice of Luthien puzzled almost everyone. It was a large, but rather resource-poor world whose water and vegetation were always poised delicately on the verge of extinction. Why, asked the nobles and military alike, did the Coordinator choose a world whose population was just three million and whose greatest product was the Tushan Lobster, a small crustacean delicacy? Indeed there existed three other already-developed worlds more equipped to handle the responsibilities of housing the capital. What the critics did not realize was that the Coordinator had intentionally created this situation to test the mettle of her people, in case peace and prosperity were making them too soft.

Old Ways And New

Now I know how the slaves felt building the pyramids of Egypt.

—Comment by a mason during the construction of Imperial City in Luthien, as quoted in “A Castle in a Jungle: Report on Building the New Capital on Luthien,” by Raul Jahns, in Engineering Journal, February 2619


Urizen Kurita the Second succeeded Sanethia when she resigned as Coordinator in 2620. With the determination typical of his line, the 30-year-old ruler oversaw much of Imperial City’s construction on Luthien. At a height of over two meters and weighing 110 kilos, he was massive. This made Urizen a quickly identifiable figure in his frequent trips to inspect the progress of the construction. When it was complete, Imperial City would become the most ambitious, most expensive, most energy-consuming building project ever undertaken by the Draconis Combine. Patterned mostly on the architecture of Japan, it included the Imperial Palace and numerous administration buildings of the Combine government.

There were problems from the start. It took five years just to drain the huge, fetid swamp that would provide the land for the enormous new city. That accomplished, contractors began to arrive from as far away as the Lyran Commonwealth to begin the actual construction. These contractors commanded a virtual army of manual laborers, because the Kurita family frowned on the use of complex modern machinery.

Most of these sweating workers were low-echelon members of the Kurita military or criminals assigned to the dangerous jobs such as putting huge blocks of teak or stone into position while the blocks dangled from slender cables. The primitive work methods caused many an accident, to the point that workers considered it a good day when less than 500 of their ranks were killed.

The construction of Imperial City created an economic boom across the realm. Archaic building materials such as teak, granite, marble, and mosaic tile were suddenly in great demand because of the Kurita family’s desire to create a monument to their line in the ways of the ancients.

To cope with the flow of materials heading toward Luthien, a group of lesser cities soon sprang up about the construction site. Within ten years, the population of the planet had risen to 1 billion and showed no sign of stopping.

The erection of this tremendous homage to ancient Oriental architecture sparked a wave of interest in the old ways, at least among those fortunate enough not to be breaking their backs building the city. First, House Kurita instituted the Kokugaku, the “National Learning,” which stressed Japan’s ancient history in its curriculum. Then Buddhism and Confucianism gained renewed membership after years of decline, as did the martial arts, especially the Ways of the Sword and Bow. Needless to say, the idea of Bushido, the Way of the Warrior, was especially in vogue in the 2650s.

All this emphasis on the past did not mean that House Kurita was ignoring the ways of modern science and technology. In 2652, Coordinator Urizen set the government on an ambitious program of industrial development. In addition to the goal of importing such new technologies as the HPG communication device, the project aimed to give the Draconis Combine the ability to design and produce its own weapons systems. House Kurita did not want its military to have to rely on other Houses or Star League facilities for assistance or parts.

This plan bore fruit when Lexa Tech Industries produced the first Stinger LAM in 2688. A revolutionary piece of machinery, the Land-Air Mech could convert from a BattleMech to an AeroSpace Fighter. Even the First Lord began to comission the unique Stinger LAM for his own Regular Army, much to the Kurita family’s satisfaction. This emphasis on military technology was to continue on into Takiro Kurita’s administration, which saw the development of the Panther and Dragon Mechs.

Urizen II

The Nineteenth Coordinator of the Draconis Combine, the tall, gaunt Urizen was almost shy in his authority (in contrast to his namesake of three centuries before). Despite his quiet demeanor, however, he was an excellent civil administrator.

Though his detractors dubbed him “Urizen the Passive,” he simply ignored them, successfully pursuing a policy of peaceful economic trade and colonial expansion throughout his reign. A Kurita to the core, Urizen also monitored the Household Guards closely, to assure the complete loyalty of his personal bodyguards. These precautions must have been adequate, for the Nineteenth Coordinator did not leave office until 2691, when he was 101 years of age. After his retirement, he took the unprecedented action of becoming a colonial governor on the outlying world of Echo, where he lived contentedly for another 19 years. Urizen Kurita II died in a ground vehicle accident in 2710, at the age of 120.

Return To Isolationism

Of the six realms that made up the Star League, the Draconis Combine had been the least enthusiastic about joining. This was because of the belief ingrained into every citizen of the Combine that it was the destiny of House Kurita to eventually rule all humanity. Many, from the highest general to the lowliest Unproductive, had believed that to join the Star League was to admit failure, and implied that the Kuritas no longer honored their sacred destiny.

To win back public support, particularly among the military and the ISF, the Kurita leaders went about it in a typically egocentric way. Schoolbooks underplayed cooperation between the Combine military and the Star League Regulars during the Reunification War, for example. Historians and propagandists also began to claim that the Draconis Combine had not joined the Star League because it offered any special benefits, but out of a sense of pity. Meanwhile, the news media and propagandists were ordered to avoid reporting on events occurring outside the Draconis Combine. This created an image of the Star League as somewhat apart from the realm, and so the Kurita Lord could portray the League’s policies and laws as outside interference whenever it suited his purposes.

—From Political Relations Between the Member States and the Star League, by Professor Jev Avigdor, University of Washington Press, 3021

Bushido And BattleMech Dueling

The Four Oaths: Never be late in respect to the Way of the Warrior. Be useful to the Lord. Be respectful to your parents. Rise beyond love and grief to exist for the good of man.

—From Ha Gakure (Hidden Leaves), by Yamamoto Tsunenori, 17th century


Near the end of Urizen’s term as Coordinator of the Draconis Combine, an interesting phenomenon occurred. The interest in the ways of the ancient Japanese had fostered a cult of Bushido among the warriors in the Combine. The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi and historical accounts of medieval Japan also became popular. All this renewed the Combine’s sense of destiny, and many believed the new emphasis on Japanese heritage would make the Kuritans better warriors.

As the pinnacle of the military, the Kuritan MechWarriors took every ancient word to heart. It soon became fashionable, then required, that all MechWarriors carry the Wakizashi, or short sword, and Katana, or longsword, of the ancient samurai on formal dress occasions. Dojos-schools devoted to the Way of ancient weapons-soon sprang up across the realm, reviving the nearly lost arts of Kendo and Kyudo, the ways of Sword and Bow, as well as other honorable weapons. The concept of sword dueling was revived during this time, and by the 2670s, the Coordinator had commissioned the writing of a set of rules to ensure that his MechWarriors did not kill one other off.

Those MechWarriors of non-Japanese ancestry were a little slower to become enthused about the samurai way. At first, these warriors felt very resentful at the recent turn of events. They believed that emphasizing knowledge of the ancient ways, which included learning the Japanese language (a terrible chore even for the Japanese), was becoming a means to discriminate against non-Japanese MechWarriors. It took several Proclamations by the Coordinator to convince them. He assured them that so long as a warrior was loyal, he would always be respected as vital to the destiny of the Kurita family.

This fascination with the ways of the samurai led to a growing popularity of BattleMech duels and to the concept of the Champion MechWarrior. In some ways, these revivals occurred because of Michael Cameron’s Edict of 2650, which cut back seriously the Kurita military, putting many MechWarriors out of work. Now Ronin-masterless-they were forced to make their skills pay so that they could eat.

A duel often resulted when one MechWarrior somehow insulted another. The two would then decide where and when their contest would occur. The duel itself was usually fought with few rules and simply continued until one ‘Mech was disabled. These one-on-one combats usually had the tacit approval of the participants’ commanding officers. MechWarriors who had survived many duels soon became known as “Champions” among the people. They traveled about the realm, with aid from the Kurita family, to test their skill by taking on all corners. Champion MechWarriors like Miyamoto Musashi, Amanda Kazutoyo, and Rikkard Svenson became cult heroes. The government rewarded those who managed to survive 70 or more contests; they became heads of their own Dojos, where they would train and teach others. The reputation of the Sun Zhang Academy increased appreciably during this time, as many of these skilled master duelists came there to teach.

The duels were not confined to competitions between Kurita warriors. Often, the more arrogant would wander up to the entrance of a Star League Regular Army base and challenge its best MechWarrior to a duel. When the First Lord learned of this, he ordered that no one among his troops was to accept such a challenge. The First Lord also complained formally to the Coordinator, saying these duels were wasteful as well as politically dangerous. In reply, Coordinator Urizen Kurita put on a pained expression and explained that these men were technically Ronin (without master or supervision), and therefore beyond control. Through he paid their way about the realm, he was powerless to stop them from challenging whom they chose to duel.

It was not long, however, before the First Lord had to reluctantly rescind his order. He gave in after his warriors began to plead for the chance to show that their refusal to duel was not based on cowardice. There followed some 300 separate duels between the Champions of House Kurita and veterans of the League’s Regular Army, starting in 2681 and ending in 2751 at the time of Simon Cameron’s death. The record of wins and losses showed 157 victories for House Kurita and 152 for the veterans of the Regular Army.

At first, the Regulars MechWarriors lost with alarming ease to their Kurita challengers. To counter this, the Regular Army launched an aggressive training program to bring up the standards of the average MechWarrior. Meanwhile, veteran and elite MechWarriors from other realms came forward to keep the honor of the Star League from being tarnished by the Dragon.

The Resurgence Of The ISF

Common people who behave unbecomingly to members of the military class or who show want of respect to direct or indirect officials of my government will be cut down on the spot.

—From Coordinator Urizen’s Kurita Mandate to the ISF, 2680


The almost fanatical immersion of Draconis society in the ways of ancient Japan had its effects on the Kurita family. Their normal arrogance became transformed into a righteous mania that reinforced the family’s ancient belief in its destiny as rulers of the entire Inner Sphere. Coordinator Urizen Kurita was especially inspired by the resurgence of this tradition.

Not everyone in the Combine welcomed this new wave of Japanism, however. This was especially evident after the uprising of Arkab, where a predominantly Moslem population rebelled against the imposition of Japanese and Buddhist teachings in the curriculum of the schools. After putting down the rebellion, Urizen decided to strengthen the Internal Security Forces, or ISF. In 2680, he quadrupled their budget and gave the Director a mandate to cleanse the realm of those who might tarnish its honor with their contrary ways. The ISF was more than happy to oblige.

In keeping with the times, the ISF adopted the nickname Metsuke, which means “all-seeing eyes” and was used by the secret police during the time of the Shoguns. The Metsuke began to carry the jitte, a short, trident-like sword used by the ancient Japanese police.

Within ten years, the words “ISF” and “Metsuke’ inspired terror throughout the realm. On countless occasions, the ISF carried out planetwide purges to weed out those who did not measure up to the ideals of the Draconis Combine. Many ComStar historians have said that the terrorist tactics of the ISF were the real reason that Kuritan society became stratified so quickly in the years just preceding the fall of the Star League.

Urizen's Legacy

When Urizen Kurita stepped down as Coordinator of the Draconis Combine in 2691, he left a realm radically altered. Because of his many official and unofficial policies, his domain had taken on a nearly uniform culture and a quite disturbing fanaticism. Gone were the trends toward a mellowing and melding of cultures to create something unique among the races and ages of man. Urizen’s mandate to the Internal Security Force had effectively put a stop to that. In its place, he reinstated the culture of a Japan that had existed over a thousand years before, which the Japanese themselves had overthrown when it proved too restrictive. As might be expected, imposing a culture so alien to many citizens of the Combine had several serious consequences.

The first was to stifle a trend that might have encouraged more avenues for the expression of political criticism. The ISF purges quickly put an end to that.

Another effect was to further stratify the society, which .was already divided between the nobles and the common people. The new division was between those who could adapt to the new culture, and those who could not, or would not, change to fit the times. Those who refused to adapt often lost all privileges, including the right to work. When such people were high enough in the social hierarchy, they might remain outwardly unscathed, but the ISF would haunt them to their graves.

The last and perhaps most damaging effect of this imposition of the medieval Japanese culture upon the many billions in the Combine was to give the ISF more power then ever. Indeed, they now had carte blanche to practice their dark ways.

During Urizen’s reign, two other positive trends occurred. The first was the expansion of trade between the Combine and its neighbors. Though Kuritan traders had much to learn, they made up for it in hustle and hardball tactics. (In one example, a merchant from the Lyran Commonwealth, the acknowledged expert among traders, bilked a Combine firm out of over 3 billion League bills. In response, the swindled company sent hirelings to lay waste to a warehouse filled with valuable materials owned by the Commonwealth company.)

The other trend was toward technological self-sufficiency. Up until Urizen’s reign, the Combine had relied on other states to provide them with parts for their equipment. When Urizen saw how aggressive the interstellar market was, he was understandably shocked. He immediately ordered a program to encourage the construction of more factories and to assist the expansion of Kuritan industries to supply the parts and supplies needed by the realm.

Imperial City on Luthien may be the most vivid example of the many forces acting on the Draconis Combine during this period. Completed in the final year of Urizen’s reign, the city included stunning imitations of Oriental architecture jammed up against buildings that could only be called “Kurita Kitsch.” Most of these buildings, built in the ancient ways from ancient materials such as teak, often house the most sophisticated technological tools and equipment. The greatest irony, however, may be that so many thousands died to build this city that no one but the Kurita family and its elite of courtiers, nobility, and high military men are allowed to enter.

—From The Great Draconis Lizard, by Samuel Puente, Lyran Commonwealth Historical Press, 2871

Death Of The Star League

Death comes to all, and so one must not sit and brood about it. Seize the opportunity to wield your fate as though it were a sword and be glad that the world is suddenly different.

—Takiro Kurita, from a speech to a gathering of business leaders, given immediately after the death of Simon Cameron, 2751


OPEN SEASON

First Lord Simon Cameron was killed while inspecting a mining colony on New Silesia early in 2751. Like most major dignitaries of the era, Takiro Kurita, Coordinator of the Draconis Combine, attended the funeral. His sharp eyes peering so intently from his thin, scarred face gave him the air of a hawk eyeing the chickens.

In the end, all five of the remaining Council Lords were about to prove themselves hawks, with the recent years of quiet as their victim. The peace of the decades immediately following the Reunification War had already been shattered by the reappearance of space pirates preying on worlds along the Periphery and along the borders between realms. These attacks, termed “Bandit Raids” by the news media, soon escalated into a war’s worth of quick raids and atrocities.

Obviously, there could not be so many bandits in the Inner Sphere. In reality, the various interstellar governments had decided to use the initial bandit raids as a smokescreen to hide the fact that they were springing raids of their own against their neighbors. Sometimes, it was done to right some previous wrong. Other times, it was to seize some prize. The sheer love of battle can certainly account for the rest.

Out in the Periphery, matters were coming to a head. Ever since the Reunification War, these distant republics had become known as the Territorial States. Though the Star League had launched a massive propaganda campaign to portray its rule as a benevolent force guiding the lives of distant friends, this image became more and more farcical with each news report of the growing tensions between the members of the Star League. The spark of rebellion once again ignited among the still independent minded worlds of the Periphery.

Only a strong, wise leader could have calmed the growing torrent of angry words and deeds. Unfortunately, Simon Cameron’s heir was a mere eight years old when his father died, and would not legally rule until he was 18. Even the most optimistic political analyst could see that the next ten years would be among the most crucial since the day man first took flight among the stars.

Takiro Kurita

An odd man, Takiro. Plenty of Kurita fire yet underneath it all, it almost seems that he’d be happier in a Buddhist monastery somewhere.

—Simon Cameron, as quoted in Simon Cameron: The Official Biography, ComStar Source Library


Though Takiro was the eldest of Urizen’s six children, there had been opposition to his appointment as Coordinator because of his previous deep commitment to a life of contemplation and reflection. Yet, he was a true example of what a samurai should be. Not only was he expert in the use of the katana, but he was a poet and painter as well. Because his religion taught that life is an illusion, he could not fully embrace the fanatical patriotism of the time.

While Takiro was still only heir to the throne, two district governors used the ISF to stage an assassination attempt against the young heir. The attempt failed, and Takiro had the captured ISF agents tortured into revealing who had put them up to it. With the blessing of his enraged father, Takiro hunted down the two men. Though Takiro executed only the two shugos and their male children (which many Kurita historians have referred to as lenient punishment), it ended once and for all the talk that Takiro was too “soft.”

As ruler of the Combine, Coordinator Takiro would continue many of his father’s policies. Because of his particular interest in freeing the Combine’s military industry from dependence on non-Combine resources, he was especially pleased when the Panther and Dragon BattleMechs started to roll off the assembly lines at the Alshain factories and into his ‘Mech regiments.

Coordinator Takiro differed from his father in respect to imposing the medieval Japanese culture on his people, however. He eased the strict Kokugaku—the official curriculum—and made knowledge of Japanese a requirement only for those entering government and military service. He also made several conciliatory gestures to the non-Japanese groups within the Combine.

Takiro was not a man to shirk what he saw as his more disagreeable duties. After purging the ISF of his enemies, he increased the organization’s funding and greatly expanded their duties to include scrutiny of the military. He was also responsible for the brutal suppression of the F u k u r o i Riots that occurred in 2743 when nearby Benjamin decided to close down five of the planet’s major factories.

Aleksandr Kerensky

My private audience with General Aleksandr Kerensky did not turn out exactly as I had hoped. He refused to stop his military maneuvers near Luthien. This displeases me much, and so I have ordered as many ISF agents as can be spared to infiltrate the Regular Army. We must have an earlier warning the next time General Kerensky decides to try to bully the Draconis Combine. Not only will he fail to get his way, but his military exercises might have to be postponed in favor of defending his very life.

Why so many people are so pleased to hear that he has been appointed Regent and Protector is mystery. He is a soldier. An excellent one, true, but a soldier nevertheless. It is doubtful that he will stray too far from what Simon Cameron would have wished. If he were truly as good as everyone claims, he would take his power as Regent and rule as First Lord until the boy Richard comes of age.

Even now, it seems that the young Cameron lacks the inner authority to rule effectively—not ten years from now, not twenty, not thirty years from now. We will have no choice but to gut the Star League once and for all.

—From the personal diary of Takiro Kurita, entry dated June 2751

Gutting Of The Star League

Many accounts portray Lord Kurita as the villain who orchestrated the fateful events following the Council Lords’ appointment of General Aleksandr Kerensky as Regent and Protector after Simon Cameron’s death. The theory is that Takiro Kurita managed to persuade the other four Lords into passing the new rules and laws that pushed the teetering Star League over the edge. Each of the Council Lords was willful and strong, however, and so we must assume that they equally share the blame.

Their first major action was to pass an amendment to Michael Cameron’s Edict of 2650, which had limited the size of Household Armies. This new amendment allowed the five Lords to legally double the size of their own personal militaries. In truth, this was a mere formality, for every one of the five House Leaders had begun a military build-up almost from the day after Simon Cameron’s death. Believing that troubled times lay ahead, each believed he had the right to increase security for his own House.

The next year, the Council Lords passed another edict that raised the taxes levied on the Territorial States. It also gave each Lord a greatly enlarged chunk of the League’s revenue. In the Draconis Combine, there were different reactions to the news. The few commoners who might have chanced to hear a rumor probably shrugged at the greed of the upper class. Of course, they would not voice such thoughts aloud. That might leave a person cold and dead, his head stuck to the point of a jitte and placed in a rice paddy as a warning to others. The upper classes and newly prosperous merchants eagerly anticipated the boost to their realm’s economy and stature. The propagandists, of course, had a field day portraying this event as yet another proof of the Kurita dynasty’s obvious superiority as leaders of men.

Misplaced Trust

Is it villainy to take advantage of a situation? Better to keep silent and prepare for the inevitable than to speak and grow weak.

—Minoru Kurita, in his speech broadcast by State Holo Channel 5, in 2771


Richard Cameron’s accession to the title of First Lord was the event that sealed the fate of the Star League, that noble experiment among men. Though he had spent the last ten years playing the role of an appreciative youngster trying to learn from his wise elders, a very hurt and petty young man had been hiding behind that serene appearance. He must have brooded over every insult, real or imagined, that the five Council Lords may have committed during the decade before he was old enough to claim his title.

When he finally did so, Richard Cameron vented all his pentup anger in Executive Order 156. This order demanded that all five Council Lords immediately disband their private armies. Coordinator Takiro Kurita was said to have burst into a fit of uncharacteristic laughter upon receiving the order. For once united, the other Lords responded in such fury that Richard Cameron was forced to revoke the order.

In April of 2765, New Vandenberg and 17 other Periphery worlds revolted against the Star League. Ever since the death of Simon Cameron and the levying of new taxes against the Territorial States, violent dissent had been running high in the outer worlds. Though Kerensky complained that it was like trying to put a lid on a volcano, he had no choice but to pull troops from the Inner Sphere and send them to the Periphery. Indeed, the rebellion of New Vandenberg and the other outer worlds only made official a war that had already begun.

Within a year, three-quarters of all Regular Army troops were in the Periphery fighting to keep the rebellion from spreading further. To protect and guard the safety of the Terran Member-State and the First Lord, General Kerensky suggested that only troops from certain trustworthy Lords be used. First Lord Cameron politely refused, stating that Stefan Amaris, ruler of the Rim Worlds Republic, had been kind enough to offer his own troops to guard the Terran Member-State.

From his own dealings with Stefan Amaris, Takiro Kurita knew him as a man hungry, even greedy, for power. Though Kurita did not particularly disapprove of that, he knew it meant he must watch Amaris carefully. That is just what Takiro did, drawing his own conclusions. He guessed that Stefan Amaris had learned to play on the idealistic and impressionable young Richard Cameron’s ego. He also intuited that some secret agreement between the two was behind the huge influx of ‘Mech regiments from the Rim Worlds Republic into the worlds around the Terra.

What Takiro had not foreseen was how swiftly Stefan Amaris would act when his troops finally outnumbered units of the Regular Army. In lightning attacks, Stefan seized Terra and then proceeded to seize all of its worlds. The attacks were so well-planned and so totally surprising that only a few pleas for help managed to make it out of Terra.

Stefan The Usurper

When news of Stefan Amaris’s seizure of Terra and the execution of the Camerons reached Takiro Kurita, the Coordinator’s immediate reaction was one of quiet acceptance. Personally, he felt that Stefan had made a terrible mistake, however. Killing the Cameron family would only bring more violence and would undoubtedly draw the wrath of General Kerensky on Amaris’s head. Takiro also believed it would have been shrewder for Amaris to have taken advantage of the young Lord’s admiration and trust to get anything he wanted from the Star League

—From Fall of an Empire, by Grenville DuSimpson, Tharkad Press, 3021


Takiro’s quiet acceptance changed to anger when news reached him that his grand-nephew Drago Kurita and his family were still on Terra under the “protective custody” of Stefan Amaris. As Ambassador to the Star League, it was Drago who had been keeping Takiro up-to-date on recent events. When it had become clear that violence would soon erupt, Takiro had ordered Drago to leave Terra. Before he could do so, the planet was taken over by Amaris, who captured Drago, his wife, and his four children.

Takiro suffered heart failure a few days later. He lingered for a day, discussing political questions with his son Minoru and quietly whispering to his gathered family that he would soon be visiting their honored ancestors. He was an astonishing 121 years old when he died. Even after leaving this life, his wishes for the Combine would have an important effect on the coming events.

Minoru Kurita now assumed control. Because he was a more aggressive man, most expected him to attempt to rescue his relations by force of arms. Documents recovered by the Lyran intelligence Corps and subsequently obtained by ComStar show that Minoru could not act as he wished, however. Takiro had apparently made a death-bed request of his son to handle the situation through negotiation and not violence. Though no doubt upset that he must stay his hand, Minoru deeply respected his father and knew he must honor his last request. Anything less would be a great loss of face for himself and the whole Draconis Combine.

Some have speculated on how events might have turned out if Minoru had not been bound by his father’s death-bed request. Had the aggressive Minoru felt free to throw his military against the still-winded forces of Amaris in an attempt to rescue his relatives, would the Kurita family have emerged as one of the heroes of this era instead of as the villain?

As it was, Minoru had to stand by quietly while Stefan Amaris sent him threats sugar-coated with jovial comments on the health and happiness of Kurita’s grand-nephew and family. When Amaris asked for news of General Kerensky or for help in defending a border world, Minoru reluctantly gave Amaris whatever he needed.

No one will ever know exactly how much Minoru actively aided Amaris during the seven years of his war against the Star League. What we do know is that Minoru turned down a request from Colonel Bradley, commander of the 3rd Regimental Combat Team (the Eridani Light Horse), to use Kurita worlds as bases of operation for their attacks against Amaris forces. Some evidence also indicates that it was a member of the ISF who tipped off Amaris to the plans of the 3rd RCT’s 19th Striker Regiment. Amaris used the information to ambush and destroy the 19th, one of the best units in the Regular Army.

It was more what the Combine did not do that angered the rest of the Inner Sphere. While the other states were allowing the Regular Army to pass through their realms and to use Star League bases, Minoru banned General Kerensky from entering the Draconis Combine. It reached the point that General Kerensky had to invade a portion of the Combine to get the use of several Star League facilities he needed to create a flanking front on Amaris. On Vega, lmbro, Styx, and Altair, Regular Army forces clashed with DCMS forces. To be fair, these confrontations were little more than token engagements in which the Combine forces retreated after only a few minutes of combat. The media of other Houses exaggerated these battles in their reports, creating even more bad feeling against Minoru.

Only after Kerensky and the Regular Army had reclaimed Terra did the public understand why the Coordinator had behaved so strangely. Despite Minoru’s cooperation with Amaris, the Regular Army found Drago Kurita and his family dead in their rooms, apparently murdered by Amaris in the chaos just before the fall of Terra.

Into The Darkness

Walk in a forest during the day and the sunshine makes the trees seem like a friendly presence. You feel happy. But walk in the forest at night and the trees remind you of prison bars. Why? Because the sunlight is no longer there to illuminate all that seems good in our experience. We are left to face only the dark side of our own nature.

—From Koans For a Modern Age, by Jennifer Katsuyori, Gideon Press, 3000


When the five Council Lords gathered again on Terra in October 2780, they found very little on which to agree. They did manage to strip General Kerensky of his duties as Protector, much to Minoru’s satisfaction, and sent him back to his army. The five also approved our sainted Jerome Blake as Minister of Communications. This proved to be the limit of their cooperation.

Their efforts to find a new First Lord quickly degenerated into chaos, with each of the five Council Lords trying to make deals with the others to get himself seated as the new First Lord. In August 2781 , after months of mutual threats, pleas, and friendly and not so friendly efforts at persuasion, the Council Lords left Terra, never to meet together again.

Back on Luthien, Minoru Kurita began immediately to place his military on war alert. He also made expensive purchases of the few remaining loads of valuable natural resources available from the Terran Member-State and from some of the other realms before all the borders began to close.

Any non-Star League military units that had not been destroyed in the recent war suddenly became quite popular. Representatives from all five Houses began to court them with lucrative offers to join the cause of their respective Lords. There were even efforts to hire Regular Army troops as mercenaries.

Masterless Warriors

THE 47 RONIN

Morning Silhouettes.
Warriors stand ready-tense.
By noon, pained silence.

—Haiku by Coordinator Minoru Kurita

General Kerensky spent the four years following his dismissal as Protector trying to persuade the five Lords to reconvene the Council. He hoped, rather naively, that they would be able to resolve all their differences if they could only meet one last time.

Irritated by the aging war hero’s persistent calls for peace, the Lords began to hint boldly that it was time for Kerensky to retire. At last, the General had no choice but to face the fact that the former Lords of the Star League’s High Council had no real wish to ease the growing tensions among them.

In February 2784, General Kerensky summoned together his loyal officers on Terra, where he outlined his plan. Immediately after this meeting, the Regular Army quartermasters began to supervise a major effort to acquire over 200 transport JumpShips and an equal number of DropShips and liners.

Minoru Kurita heard about the surge of activity in the Regular Army. He read reports that League bases within the Draconis Combine were being stripped and the disassembled parts being packed up and moved out. He also became aware of the sudden heavy activity around New Samarkand, whose large Star League base and spaceport had suddenly become the center of tremendous traffic and commerce.



Though the reports made Minoru uneasy, he continued with his own plans for military buildup. Among his other secret initiatives during this time, the Coordinator sent a diplomatic mission to the Lyran Commonwealth with a proposal of importance to the Archon.

New Samarkand continued to be a hive of activity. By November, hundreds of freighters literally jammed the system’s jump points. By late October, Regular Army fleets normally assigned to the Lyran Commonwealth, the Free Worlds League, and the Capellan Confederation were appearing in the New Samarkand system.

With growing alarm, the DCMS generals began to urge a complete war alert in the Draconis Combine, or at least in the Galedon Military District. There had already been two incidents of Kurita fighters being attacked when they came too close to the League orbital outpost above New Samarkand. Four eggs (AeroSpace pilots) had been lost, and the planet’s population felt as though under a state of siege. Five days later, a ‘Mech recon patrol from the Sun Zhang Academy was fired upon when it ventured too close to the League’s base.

Minoru took no action in response to these incidents, and merely continued to stockpile equipment and supplies. His cryptic comment on the events in and around New Samarkand was that the masterless warriors tend to gather together before departing a burning castle.

Though this statement was inscrutable to most, hindsight reveals that the Coordinator at least suspected General Kerensky’s intentions. In private, Coordinator Minoru must have been deeply concerned. His words about the Regular Army leaving could only have been based on a hunch that General Kerensky, like a true warrior, would rather exit the scene than face disgrace as a non-participant in future events. We can only wonder whether the legend of the 47 ronin haunted the Coordinator’s dreams.

Evening stars prepare
to jump. Gray, sad warriors
leave for the unknown.

—Haiku written by Coordinator Minoru Kurita immediately after the exodus of the Regular Army, November 2784

The 47 ronin were faithful samurai retainers of a lord whose rival had tricked him into committing a serious breach of honor. To atone, the lord had to commit suicide. The 47 now-masterless ronin left the castle of their dead lord. Under the leadership of one Oishi Yoshio, however, they made plans to revenge their master’s honor on the man who had tricked their lord into his death. One snowy night, all 47 ronin crept into the lord’s manor, where they cut off his head and stuck it to the point of a spear. The 47 then paraded the gruesome prize back to the shogun.

The shogun now found himself in a dilemma. He greatly admired the 47 for their adherence to bushido, which required complete loyalty to one’s master, even after his death. Indeed, the 47 quickly became a kind of ideal of what true samurai should be. The problem was that if the shogun allowed the 47 ronin to live, he would be rewarding a murderous vendetta that was clearly against the law (though everyone agreed their action had been morally correct).

In the end, the shogun decided that he must uphold the law, or else he would be creating a dangerous precedent by setting the 47 ronin free. They would have to commit hara-kiri, for which the 47 had been prepared from the start. Immediately afterward, they became martyrs in the tradition of bushido, earning a permanent niche in the arts and legends of the Japanese people.

Minoru Kurita knew that General Kerensky might consider it his duty to continue to serve his now dead master by attacking anyone who had been his enemy. If Kerensky were to seek vengeance, he would most certainly seek to wreak it against House Kurita first. Minoru did not doubt his own courage, but he did not think his forces could hold back the entire Regular Army.

In November, the Combine was abuzz with reports that General Kerensky and the bulk of his ‘Mech regiments were mobilizing. Regular Army JumpShips were said to be heading toward New Samarkand. On that world, activity reached an even higher fever pitch as Regular Army troops began to load countless tons of supplies aboard the hundreds of freighters gathered there.

By now, Minoru’s generals were convinced that Kerensky planned to use New Samarkand as the launching point for an offensive against the Draconis Combine. Once more Minoru restrained them. Despite his own private fears, he felt it would be ignoble to deny Kerensky’s people their chance to leave gracefully and with honor—if that were, in fact, the General’s true intention.

By late November, an estimated thousand or so freighters had gathered about New Samarkand. Indeed, the peasants of the planet would later tell their children and grandchildren how sunlight reflecting from the hulls and sails of Kerensky’s fleet was as though “Lord Buddha had sprinkled the cosmos with a special gift of stars that burned and twinkled beautifully for a few months and then were gone.”

The First Succession War

Many Draconians viewed General Kerensky’s departure with great admiration. Though the Kurita propagandists had always portrayed the Regular Army as an undisciplined, uncouth, smelly horde, doing the will of a government drunk with power, that changed now. In the days immediately after Kerensky vanished with his followers, the Combine media began to describe them as true warriors who, after becoming masterless, gracefully and politely withdrew from the affairs of the remaining states.

Then the leaders of the Combine military learned the startling information that not all the Regular Army had left the Inner Sphere. One of the most notable exceptions was the famed Eridani Light Horse. Minoru immediately sent officers and diplomats to the 3 RCT’s headquarters on Trondheim in the Rasalhague Military District.

The commanding officer of the Eridani Light Horse quickly dashed any hopes that the three elite ‘Mech regiments would be eager to sign up with the Draconis military, however. Instead, Colonel Ezra Bradley stated that the Light Horse had no intention of entering into “The petty politics of five petty rulers.” The three regiments would remain here to await the return of General Kerensky. Lord Kurita’s representatives returned to Luthien with the news of Bradley’s refusal, but it would be only the first of many meetings between the Draconis Combine and the famed Eridani Light horse. Most of the other Regular Army regiments that had chosen to stay behind were still in the region of the near-deserted Terran Member-State.

[EDITOR’S NOTE: The Kuritans do not find much honor in hiring mercenaries, but they knew it was the only way to quickly build up their forces at this crucial moment. As the destined future rulers of all mankind, they would like to think that they do not need help. The second reason that the generals of the DCMS dislike hiring mercenaries is because they believe, and rightly so, that most mercenaries are not totally trustworthy. Only a few units such as the Eridani Light Horse or Wolf’s Dragoons might be worthy of an employer’s trust.]

Despite misgivings, the Draconis Combine did hire on several merc units during this time. The 52nd Heavy Assault Regiment, the 104th Striker Regiment, and the 28th Heavy Horse Regiment all signed contracts. Along with the 13th Republic Light Lancer regiment, a ‘Mech unit from the forces of Amaris, the generals of the Draconis Combine now had more than enough unindoctrinated MechWarriors to worry about.

Bujitsu

If war is inevitable, then why wait for a formal declaration? Strike when you are ready. Pride heals far quicker for a victor.

—From The Fall of Red Autumn Leaves, by Minoru Kurita, 2794


Bujitsu is a specialty of the way of the warrior. It involves two opposing samurai kneeling before one other, their wakizashi sheathed but ready at their sides. A samurai skilled in bujitsu would be able to draw his sword and strike at his opponent with great speed and grace. Minoru Kurita saw the Draconis Combine and the Lyran Commonwealth as two such kneeling samurai. Now that the Commonwealth was a confirmed enemy, Minoru intended to apply his skills at bujitsu to strike the first blow.

In August of 2785, an Azami ‘Mech battalion slipped across the border in unmarked medium ‘Mechs to hit the undefended Commonwealth world of Bone-Norman that lay near the Periphery. Shocked at the possibility of an attack from the Periphery, the High Command of the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces shifted all its forces along the Kurita border toward the Periphery. This was exactly what Minoru Kurita had hoped would happen.

The DCMS struck at Trolloc Prime and Gram, worlds whose defenses had been significantly weakened. The lighter and more highly disciplined ‘Mechs of the Kurita units had an easy time of it against the heavy, plodding tactics of the Commonwealth defenders. Within three months, the Draconis Combine claimed both planets for its own.

Though the Draconis military was prepared for a Lyran counterattack, it never came because of the Commonwealth’s reluctance to be the first to openly declare war. Once they realized the attack would not come, the DCMS launched another invasion in June 2786.

Disguised to resemble a freighter, a Kurita troopship slipped into the Skondia system. The Commonwealth system defenders never challenged the ship, even after all its DropShips had detached and begun a High-G burn toward the planet Skondia. The Kurita ‘Mechs were allowed o make an unopposed drop on to the planet.

Instead of attacking the heavy industrial areas of the planet, which was what the Commonwealth defenders expected, the Kurita ‘Mechs began to lay waste to the planet’s cities. At this point, the commander of the planetary defenders ordered all his ‘Mechs forward to challenge the attackers, but it was a bad decision. As soon as the defenders had moved away from the factories, a second wave of Kurita ‘Mechs dropped from their still unchallenged DropShips. This second wave totally destroyed many of the factories.

The Commonwealth defenders had failed to protect either the people of Skondia or its important factories. Indeed, it was the ease of this victory that led Minoru Kurita to decide that the Lyran Commonwealth was a weak opponent. So weak, in fact, that he could simply come back and take care of them later. Lord Kurita had other intentions at the moment, and they turned him in the opposite direction, toward House Davion and its Federated Suns.

Between Two Enemies

Though bushido has been adopted to suit many different situations, the concept of courtesy toward one’s enemy has always remained vital to a warrior’s sense of honor.

Throughout history, there have been instances of a strong warrior facing an opponent who is ill-prepared to fight, let alone to die. In many such situations, the warrior would simply bypass his opponent, believing it a courtesy to ignore the other’s weakness and to give him a chance to prepare for the next meeting.

On the other hand, the bypassed warrior would feel great shame because of his lack of composure and the fact that he was denied the chance to fight. He would do his best to improve himself for the next meeting. In this way, bushido encouraged weaker warriors to improve themselves so that victory in combat could occur between equally matched opponents and not because of an honorless conquest of the weak.

This courtesy also extends to large strategic actions, such as those of House Kurita during the early days of the First Succession War. The Combine military had exposed the Lyran Commonwealth for what it was: a realm made vulnerable by the incompetence of its military. Instead of pouncing, Lord Kurita decided to take on a much worthier opponent, the Federated Suns.

—From Considerations Upon the Way of the Way of the Warrior, by Professor Timothy Hudello, NAIS 3021

The Dragon Strikes

THE SUNS MUST SET

The noonday suns burn
the dozing Dragon. He’ll wake
when the suns must set.

—Battle haiku sent by Coordinator Minoru Kurita to all troops participating in the offensive against the Federated Suns

Having proclaimed himself First Lord in late December of 2786, Coordinator Minoru Kurita felt it necessary to demonstrate the Combine’s overwhelming strength. Because the Federated Suns was the only opponent that could be a real match for the Draconis Combine, Minoru gave his son permission to begin planning a major offensive against Davion.

To cleverly disguise his plans, Warlord Jinjiro Kurita used the high state of alert in the Galedon Military District still in effect since Kerensky’s exodus. He guessed correctly that the Federated Suns had grown accustomed to all the heavy traffic in that region of space. To mask the arrival of Kurita regiments from the Steiner border onto the Davion border area, he ordered all troop transports to pass through Galedon first before dispersal to staging areas along the border.

The ISF, meanwhile, had managed to discover that the commanders of the Federated Suns were currently preparing an offensive against the Capellan Confederation. To stiffen the strength of the invasion, House Davion was pulling units from the Draconis March for reassignment elsewhere. That left the remaining units with an area far too large for them to effectively defend.

By the spring of 2787, Jinjiro had massed over 50 ‘Mech regiments and accompanying lesser units on the Davion border. Because his plan depended so much on the element of surprise, he gave his troops surprising orders when some premature clashes occurred on the planets Saffeli and David. In both instances, he commanded his men to fight with an absolute minimum of units. Even if it meant losing these border clashes, it was imperative that Davion not learn that the Combine had massed more than a third of its military along their mutual border.

In May of that year, the Kurita Dragon rose up to strike hard at the forces of the Federated Suns. Though the Kuritans were attacking all along the border, the main focus of the invasion was the Tannil-Cussar region, where a total of 15 ‘Mech regiments were concentrated.



The surprise attack caught the forces of the Federated Suns completely off-guard. In the initial chaos, the defenders received conflicting orders to make an orderly retreat and to stand and fight. In the confusion, some regiments stayed and others pulled back, creating gaps in the front. One such instance occurred when the Syrtis Hussars stayed on Galtor III while the 23rd Heavy Assault Regiment (a mercenary group from the Regular Army) pulled back from Marduk.

The officers of the DCMS were not slow to take advantage of the situation. In a month’s time, the elite 1st Sword of Light, commanded by Jinjiro Kurita himself, had arrived on the Davion world of Franklin. Minoru, at the head of the 3rd Sword of Light, was on Cartago. Their general strategy was to engage the enemy and to cut off their escape by destroying the Davion JumpShips and DropShips. Once the enemy was stranded, a large assault force would land to severely wound the Davion ground forces, but not to totally destroy them. That accomplished, the assault force would move on to another planet while a lighter force arrived to slowly take the defenders apart.

The strategy was working well, as Kurita spearheads gobbled up worlds with astonishing speed. By 2792, the forces of the Draconis Combine had penetrated as far as Imbrial III, Kestrel, and Saunemin. Though they had to contend with some stubborn resistance—at Galtor III, for example, deep to the rear of the advance—the Kuritans had little doubt that they would reach their objective, New Avalon, the capital of the Federated Suns.

One of the first effects of the successful Kurita campaign in progress was that the military of other Houses adopted their strategy of “planet-hopping.” As on Cartago, this involved stranding a planet’s defenders, leaving them to be mopped up at the attacker’s leisure.

The other effects were less obvious, though just as important. One was the immediate shift in the attitude of the other Houses toward the Draconis Combine. There were even discussions among the highest councils of the Commonwealth, the Free Worlds League, and the Capellan Confederation about the possible wisdom of allying with the Dragon.

Though the Commonwealth certainly had no love for House Kurita, they were giving serious consideration to a mutual nonaggression treaty. The idea was ultimately too repellent, and so the Lyrans decided to redouble their efforts to shape up their own military while the Draconis Combine was busy harassing the Federated Suns.

The leaders of the Capellan Confederation, on the other hand, were eager to join with the Draconis Combine. They had long suffered beneath the weight of the Federated Suns and gladly welcomed the possibility that Kurita might bring Davion down. The fact that the dominant culture of the Draconis Combine was similar to the Confederation’s quasi-Chinese traditions made the prospects of an alliance all the more appealing.

As for the Free Worlds League, they would probably never have given an alliance with the Combine much thought except that they wanted to see their traditional Steiner enemy vanquished. The leaders of House Marik believed that the Combine military would turn back toward the Lyran Commonwealth when they were done with the Federated Suns.

Of the three, only the Capellan Confederation actually put forward a proposal. With House Kurita riding so high on their military successes, the Coordinator flatly rebuffed the Liao diplomats, however. Instead, Minoru proposed that Liao join with him unconditionally in an immediate offensive against the flank of the Federated Suns. That effectively cut short any further discussion of an alliance between the Capellans and the Draconis Combine.

Heaven's Gate

Second in importance and political power to Coordinator Minoru Kurita during this period was his son Jinjiro. Born to a concubine on Luthien, Jinjiro had spent much of his early life at the center of hot political wrangling.

Though his mother’s given name has been lost, it was customary for a concubine to have an adornment-name, and hers was Heaven’s Gate. A native of the Rasalhague District, she was apparently a beautiful woman whose non-Oriental features made her popular in the ukiyos, or pleasure districts, until Minoru bought her contract. After Jinjiro was born, Heaven’s Gate used every persuasive art she knew to get Minoru to officially adopt the child, making him the legal heir. So great was her desire to see her son become the next Coordinator that perhaps there is truth to the rumors that she spiked the food and drink of Minoru’s wife and other mistresses with an abortion powder. Minoru did eventually recognize Jinjiro as his son and heir. Jinjiro was already ten years old by that time and Minoru’s wife, Yvonne Toshi, was six months pregnant.

Soon, many in the Court were whispering that the Coordinator had been bewitched by his concubine. Whether or not that was true, Yvonne Toshi did not like recent developments concerning the son of Heaven’s Gate, and so she had her pushed off the parapets of Imperial City one dark night. When Jinjiro discovered the twisted form of his mother the next morning, she was still alive. It was almost as though she had hung on, hoping that somehow he would find her, for she died there in Jinjiro’s arms. Legend says that the weeping of Heaven’s Gate can still be heard at certain times among the chambers of the palace concubines.

Perhaps it was the trauma of having to watch his mother die so suddenly and so horribly that began to gnaw away at Jinjiro’s sanity. The pain and shock may have been just enough to push a sensitive boy along the road to madness and atrocity.

Though he grew up to be an unstable, violent man, Jinjiro Kurita was also a skilled military strategist. He carried out some brilliant actions against the Steiner military in the late 2780s, which affirmed his own private belief that House Steiner was too weak to be a worthy target at the present time.

—From “Analysis of Childhood Factors on the Personality of Jinjiro Kurita,” Internal Bulletin by David Morgenthau, Director of the ComStar Psychopolitical Archives, Terra

Kentares IV

Mist-covered mountains
Move in and out of vision.
Real or just fog dreams?

—Haiku found upon the body of Minoru Kurita


By the beginning of 2796, the Kurita offensive had reached the Davion worlds of Odell, Saginaw, and Delavan. They were now just a few tantalizing light years away from New Avalon. Indeed, several raids had already been conducted against the capital of the Federated Suns. Victory seemed sure.

Minoru decided that it was time to halt the offensive long enough for his men to get some rest. He also wanted some of the heavier units to go back and clean up the pockets of heavy resistance they had bypassed. Warlord Jinjiro disagreed bitterly with his father, saying it was not good to give the enemy a chance to rest and regroup. An offensive is nothing if it does not constantly drive forward, he insisted.

Minoru, now 91, must have been weary enough of fighting and killing. With the end of life now so near, he no longer felt the same drive toward conquest, glory, or fame that fueled the battle lust of younger men. He ignored his son’s advice.

Then, in March 2789, the offensive suffered a rather humiliating defeat. New Rhodes III, a world neighboring Terra and on the extreme edge of the offensive, had been taken by the DCMS early in the war. Though they had attempted to subjugate the civilian population, it was proving more difficult than expected. Indeed, the civilian populations of all occupied Davion worlds were showing remarkable stubbornness. Added to this was a still active guerrilla force of ‘Mechs on New Rhodes III.

By the beginning of 2789, however, the commander of the Kurita forces believed that he had finally crushed all guerrilla resistance on Rhodes. The planet was now assigned to be a major depot for supplying Kurita troops in the immediate area. The Kurita commander immediately began to stockpile massive amounts of weapons and ammunition in every open space of the world’s main spaceport.

To impress upon the unruly civilian population that the Dragon ruled, the Kurita commander had planned a parade. After gathering much of the sullen civilian population on the tarmac of the spaceport, he began marching his forces past them. As the shiny troops, tanks, and ‘Mechs paraded past, however, a small force of Davion BattleMechs, led by Captain Conrad Warrent, rose from the river at the spaceport’s edge. When Kurita forces that had not yet entered the parade attacked them, the Davion ‘Mechs jumped their way into the piles of arms and ammunition.

In the ensuing battle, a thousand tons of supplies were lost, as well as many Kurita tanks and ‘Mechs. A local news crew had managed to secretly record the whole scene. They managed to smuggle the tapes offworld, too, which resulted in the story of the Combine’s humiliation spreading throughout the Federated Suns.

It was because of the debacle at New Rhodes that Coordinator Minoru and the 6th Sword of Light ‘Mech regiment had to make its way to Kentares IV. The loss of supplies on New Rhodes had stalled the Kurita forces’ efforts to beat down elements of the 7th Crucis Lancers on Kentares. The Combine was now in danger of losing the planet completely.

Landing there in early summer, Minoru’s units were besieged almost immediately by the aggressive and creative tactics of the Davion regiment. Using sheer weight of numbers, Minoru forced his opponents onto a single continent. By late summer, he had nearly encircled them.

Outside New Snowfield, a small town nestled in the Carmelite Mountains, the Coordinator met his fate. Unable to pass up a chance to gaze upon the incredible scenery, Minoru left his BattleMaster and went on foot to the sunny alpine meadows, accompanied only by his lance members, a few guards, and a Buddhist priest. There the Coordinator and the priest sat among the trees, talking privately.

No one saw the camouflaged sharpshooter from an infantry unit attached to the 7th Crucis Lancers as he made his way down the mountain. The shot from the sniper’s laser rifle caught the Coordinator in the back.

As he lay dying, Minoru whispered something to those gathered about him. Those words are lost to posterity, for Minoru’s companions never betrayed their leader’s trust. Meanwhile, the sniper managed to slip back up the mountain in the confusion, apparently not realizing whom he had killed.

The Massacre

Smoke rises from ruins.
Our ‘Mechs destroy and spit death
at innocents. Shame.

—Haiku found on the body of a Kurita officer who committed suicide during the Kentares Massacre


When some of Warlord Jinjiro’s officers heard of the Coordinator’s death, only the bravest, Talon Sergeant Richard Tobiason, dared to bring Jinjiro the news.

As he listened, Jinjiro remained calm, however. His only response was to call to him his aide, General Dazai Sorai. A few moments later, the new Coordinator left his office alone. On the way out of the command post, he ordered that Talon Sergeant Tobiason be promoted to Colonel and that some one clean up the mess in his office.

What the other officers found in Jinjiro’s office was the disemboweled body of General Dazai Sorai, whose his head lay on the floor nearby. Jinjiro had apparently been enraged that General Sorai had lacked the courage to report the news of Minoru’s death. He ordered Sorai to commit hara-kiri, and gave himself the honor of the beheading stroke. [EDITOR’S NOTE: hara-kiri means “happy dispatch” as well as “belly cutting.”]

It was an eerily calm Jinjiro who boarded a JumpShip, accompanied by a regiment of the Sword of Light. This strange Jinjiro must have been even more frightening than the man of violent outbursts whom they had come to know so well. When Jinjiro Kurita arrived on Kentares, there was more bad news. A Davion force from across the front on Sonnia had rescued the remainder of the 7th Crucis Lancers.

A few days later, Jinjiro gathered together all his commanding officers on Kentares and gave them one curt order. “Kill them all,” he said quietly, still calm. When one of the officers attempted to ask Jinjiro for further explanation of the order, Jinjiro ordered that the man be shot by his Otomo, members of the palace guards who serve as personal bodyguards for the Kuritas. Without another word, the remaining officers left the tent.

During the next five months, Kurita units on Kentares dispersed across the planet and began to systematically kill every citizen of the planet. The mass executions were accomplished by rounding up as many as possible in the cities, then using ‘Mechs and vehicles to hunt down the rest. It was during the second month of this hellish activity that the Kuritans’ military discipline began to waver. No matter how deeply indoctrinated with stoicism and obedience to the ruler, the duty of killing hundreds of people day after day was beginning to take its toll on the ordinary soldiers. Some were deliberately allowing groups of Kentares citizens to escape, and there were even reports of officers beginning to do the same. Soldiers had also begun to commit suicide because of the atrocities.

For Jinjiro, the thousands killed were no more than a number. To revive the sense of horror that his soul seemed to crave, he began to attend the executions. He even forbade the use of modern weapons at those he witnessed, preferring to see his victims beheaded by the sword.

When Jinjiro had satisfied his revenge enough to leave Kentares in February 2797, he left behind a silent world plunged in grief. His men had massacred more than 90 percent of the planet’s civilian population, amounting to some 52 million men, women, and children.

Among the dead was the Buddhist priest who had been talking with Minoru Kurita just before his death. When the priest came to Jinjiro to try to stop the genocide, Jinjiro stabbed him and left his body to rot with the rest of the victims of his rage.

The news of this atrocity spread when the ComStar representative on Kentares, in an understandable breach of our laws, broadcast the news of the massacre at the first possible opportunity. Soon the entire Inner Sphere knew what Jinjiro had done.

As a result of the massacre, the Eridani Light Horse decided to leave the Draconis Combine in June 2798, a move not easily accomplished. Hoping to force the unit to remain in the Combine, a planetary official on Sendai held the dependents of two battalions of the Light Horse hostage. When the Light Horse failed to surrender, all the hostages were killed. The battalions, the 8th Recon and the 50th Heavy Cavalry (later nicknamed the Bloody Half-Hundred) dropped on to Sendai and wreaked a horrible vengeance. When it was done, the entire Eridani Light Horse left the Draconis Combine and entered the Free Worlds League.

Blood Fever

Military indoctrination courses are required of all raw recruits entering the military. These courses, usually consisting of speeches, films, and discussions, attempt to drill into each potential soldier why and for whom he is laying his life on the line. Though every Successor State uses this time-honored military technique, that of the Draconis Combine is by far the most exhaustive.

Though every Combine citizen knows the current line of propaganda chapter and verse, the recruit is treated as though totally ignorant of his realm’s history and destiny. In addition to rigorous physical training, he must endure a political and mental training that is every bit as demanding and has its own share of accidents and casualties.

Those who crack under the mental strain are automatically mustered out of the military. Indeed, the ISF will now keep them under almost continuous surveillance because their failure in indoctrination marks them as permanent security risks. Many who are booted out of the military in this way commit suicide soon after.

The remaining recruits become so steeped in political dogma and the belief in the infallibility of their superiors that they are generally incapable of independent actions on the battlefield. The old saying that a Kurita soldier is about as independent as a pebble in a rockslide is exactly the state of mind the Kurita officers want in their men. It is true that a soldier who obeys orders to the letter may never take the initiative, but neither will he rebel.

This extreme tendency to bottle up emotions and urges at times causes virtual explosions of mental frenzy. Known as the “Berserker Syndrome” or “Blood Fever,” the condition also breaks out among the militaries of other Successor Houses, but Kurita soldiers seem especially prone to it.

The Kentares Massacre is the most obvious example of this bloodlust. When ordered to murder the entire population of Kentares IV, most Kurita soldiers resisted the idea at first. Indeed, it took the execution of several Kurita troopers to guarantee that the order was carried out at all.

Once the killing started, however, the participating soldiers began to do the work with more and more speed. It no longer mattered to them what they were doing; all that mattered was to see the job done. Many soldiers, particularly those in the lower ranks, went on a virtual frenzy of killing. They nearly gave up resting, eating, and sleeping. All that slowed these men was the lack of ammunition and the time it took to hunt down their ‘Targets.”

One soldier who succumbed to this form of group madness said it best. “The people of Kentares no longer seemed human to me. They became mere objects, and I felt kilometers distant as I watched them fall beneath my laser rifle. It was more like trying to mow down an endless sea of flesh-colored grass that moved, parted, and made funny noises when I pulled the trigger.”

Of course, many of these soldiers eventually shook themselves free from this mania. Some managed to cope with what they had done because of their strong political beliefs and loyalty. Others were not so lucky, and many committed suicide during and immediately after the Kentares Massacre.

—From Mob Psychology In Military Matters, by Major-General Trevish Bradley (Ret.), ComStar Publications, 3002

Rising Suns

To hell with their blasted haiku. All I’m concerned with is seeing them maimed, mutilated, and destroyed. I don’t care if they write poetry. They’re butchers plain and simple, and I don't give a rat’s a-s-s that we might be related.

—Abe Naganori, Captain in the Federated Suns Regular Armed Forces


The sheer enormity of the Kentares massacre paralyzed House Davion with numbness for a time. As their minds slowly worked their way around the facts, anger began to well up in the souls of the people of the Federated Suns.

It was not long before Davion troops were launching spontaneous offensives against Combine forces. Though fueled by emotion rather than tactics and strategy, these attacks often succeeded. Affected in their own way by the news of the massacres, the Kuritans retreated in the face of the Davion assaults.

The commanding Davion generals at first tried to halt these independent actions by their troops. As reports of the successes of the attacks began to arrive, however, the Davion generals decided to take advantage of the situation. By the end of 2798, the Kurita presence had been pushed back from New Avalon. Streator was now the closest the Combine could come to the capital of the Federated Suns.

Jinjiro, for once totally unable to come up with a brilliant strategy, fell back on the Kuritans’ traditional defensive strategy: wave attacks and fighting to the last man. This quickly proved inadequate.

Troop morale in the DCMS was at an all-time low. Though many Kurita soldiers accepted the Kentares massacre with a disciplined blandness, the news did instill many others with feelings of guilt. This, of course, affected the efficiency of the Kurita troops. Many soldiers and even a few MechWarriors simply surrendered in order to defect to the other side.

What the Federated Suns would learn from these defectors became the core of a new intelligence-gathering structure to ensure that the Federated Suns would never be caught off-guard again.

Military Realities

It quickly became obvious even to the psychotic Coordinator that his actions on Kentares had given the soldiers of the Federated Suns the inspiration they needed to turn back the Combine’s assault. Jinjiro no longer had the capture of New Avalon as his objective, but merely to hold onto what he had won. Even that now seemed doubtful.

Many in the DCMS, including Jinjiro, were beginning to rue their earlier decision to ignore the weak Lyran Commonwealth. In their efforts to appear strong by defeating the powerful House Davion, they had forgotten that House Steiner possessed some of the richest worlds in the Inner Sphere. Now, with most of their forces committed to trying to hold onto gains in the Federated Suns, the Combine could launch only sporadic invasions and raids against the Commonwealth.

No matter how sporadic their efforts, the Kurita forces did manage to seize such Steiner planets as The Edge and to cripple many Steiner industries with their raids. Indeed, this was to become the pattern of the later stages of the First Succession War. Especially for the Draconis Combine, which was trying desperately to hold onto their gains, seizing territory become secondary to trying to hurt the enemy by simply destroying him.

This fighting style suited the Draconis Combine quite well. Using battalion-sized ‘Mech units, backed up by aerospace and warship support, the Combine launched deep raids against both its opponents. Though the raids were particularly effective against the Commonwealth, the Kuritans failed in their efforts to destroy the huge Lyran BattleMech facilities on Hesperus ii.

Because of the predominance of heavier ‘Mechs in the Lyran Forces, the Commonwealth forces were not as able to use this quick raid-and-destroy strategy. The Stealths and the Tamar Tigers, two Steiner units who did have the capability to move fast, carried out many successful raids against the Draconis Combine. Some of the important worlds they managed to hurt were Benjamin, Styx, and Dieron. Even after the Kuritans managed to ambush and destroy the Tamar Tigers on Benjamin in 2794, the Commonwealth found ways to continue some of its raiding.

Collapse

Threats of fire spark courage.
Kurita warriors can’t
retreat or be burned.

—Haiku orders from Coordinator Jinjiro, 2809


By 2808, the forces of the Federated Suns had pushed the DCMS back to the border between the Crucis and Draconis Marches. Though Jinjiro Kurita had attempted every possible means to motivate his men, including execution and torture, he was unable to ignite the spark that had inspired them in the early days of the offensive.

Now it was the turn of the Federated Suns to take back their worlds by launching swift attacks against Kurita JumpShips and DropShips, stranding the Kurita ground forces. Soon both sides were experiencing difficulty in finding enough JumpShip transportation to move their forces about. Taking a cue from the Lyran Commonwealth, each House seized commercial JumpShips and pressed them into military service.

House Davion launched a major counteroffensive in late 2808. Drawing reserves from the interior of the realm and from the border with the Capellan Confederation, the generals of the Federated Suns concentrated these new troops on either side of the front. Launched simultaneously, the two attacks were an attempt to squeeze off the “Kurita Bulge.” One drive was launched from Caselton, with attacks aimed toward Kentares, Johnsondale, and Olancha. The other drive started from the Rowe area, with attacks aimed at Barlow’s Folly, Udibi, and Cassias.

These attacks overwhelmed the Kurita defenders on most initial target worlds. Along with the efforts to win whole planets, House Davion was also launching small unit raids against supply centers deep behind enemy lines.

When word got out of the new Davion offensive and its intentions, panic struck their foe. It started among the lowly Kurita soldiers in the peasant troops manning the most forward worlds. Fearing that they would be sacrificed and eventually trapped when the Davion offensive thrusts met to their rear, many abandoned their posts and made their way to the nearest DropShip. Nothing the officers did could cajole, threaten, or whip the courage back into these ordinary soldiers. In many instances, whole infantry regiments crowded around DropShips, clamoring to get in.

Aware that they could no longer count on proper infantry support, the Kurita MechWarriors suddenly became very cautious. They attempted no major moves and made only token efforts to provide defense.

While all this was going on, it gave Davion the time and freed units to launch a third offensive in 2811. This thrust was aimed directly into the teeth of the DCMS and had as its initial targets Clovis, Doneval II, and Le Blanc.

Kurita defenses crumpled in the face of the Davion offensive. With almost extrasensory timing, the defenses on other Kurita planets weakened and collapsed during this period. Faced with a rout, Jinjiro began to strip troops from the Combine’s interior. He stationed them on the original Kurita-Davion border to provide a line of defense while trusted officers from his personal staff continued to attempt to create some semblance of fighting units out of the rabble.

House Kurita would need every bit of its reserves. Elated by victory, the forces of House Davion came roaring after the panicking Kurita troops.

By 2818, the forces of House Davion had reclaimed Clovis and Doneval II, and continued to push their way forward. The Draconis Combine had managed to create a semi-effective line of defense. They had even managed a major victory against the Lyran Commonwealth by destroying the 54th Lyran Guards on Otho. Much chaos still reigned among the DCMS, however. So many officers had committed ritual suicide because of failed missions that the military hierarchy was becoming full of holes. To plug up the gaps, Coordinator Jinjiro issued an edict forbidding any officer to commit hara-kiri until such time as he could be spared.

In the meantime, cadets from the various military academies were being pressed into service long before their training was complete. Though some of these had their moments of glory, most created more confusion because of their inexperienced decisions.

The forces of the Federated Suns slowed as they approached the region near their original border. The speed with which the Kurita offensive had crumpled left many of the Davion regiments breathless from pursuing the evening’s retreating forces. As a result, logistic lines for the Federated Suns were in a snarl. Freighters kept arriving at planets to resupply certain units, only to find that those units had already moved forward another jump. This left many Davion units down to their last cannon shell and with most of their ‘Mechs in need of repair.

The second reason the forces of the Federated Suns slow their advance was the knowledge of what would happen if they entered the Draconis Combine. The instant a Davion unit landed on a Combine world, they would have to face a whole planet of rabid defenders. >From the highest MechWarrior to the lowliest Unproductive, every Kuritan would be honor-bound to sacrifice his life to rid their world of the invaders. For the moment, the Davion High Command preferred to concentrate on retrieving the worlds they had lost.

Devotion Through Hardship

The war was by now beginning to put a strain on the civilian sectors of the Draconis Combine. After the military seized most of the commercial JumpShips, the Kuritan economy ground almost to a halt. Factories devoted to the production of purely civilian goods either converted to manufacturing for the military or else they closed.

The lower classes of the society were hardest hit, as in every war. On most worlds, the common people were the first to feel the shortages of essentials such as food, clothing, and housing. For these people, the rationing of food and water began six years into the war and remained partially in force until after the Second Succession War. Because the textile industry had to channel almost all available materials into the manufacture of uniforms, clothing for the average citizen had to be made from the cheapest cloth. The situation was similar for housing, too, with the added fact that the war destroyed existing housing at the same time it siphoned away building materials for new housing.

Into this misery came the propaganda that to sacrifice one’s comfort, security, and health for the greater good was a worthy, honorable deed. There were numerous government-sponsored contests to promote the art of selfless giving and to hold up for praise those who best exemplified it. Though some might have questioned the war measures that led to so much scarcity, the ISF was efficient enough to nip in the bud any potential protest long before it could spread. Anyone who complained publicly was executed publicly in a particularly gruesome manner.

Blood sports first made their appearance in the Draconis Combine during this time. Though the early forms were gladiator-like contests between criminals—a diversion not unknown to humanity—the propagandists put their stamp of approval on it. These brutal spectator sports helped to channel off the resentment that might otherwise have built up to dangerously explosive levels.

—From The Draconis Combine And Moral Entanglement, by Professor Uverman Brav, Tharkad University Press, 2910

Blown Back To The Stone Age

War gave the shy winds
the chance to sing within
the empty cities.

—Anonymous haiku scrawled on the wall of a government building on Tannil


By 2821, most of the fighting had died down and an unofficial cease-fire existed between the Draconis Combine, the Commonwealth, and the Federated Suns. Though raids still occurred, these usually involved forces no larger than a ‘Mech battalion and were aimed at either destruction or seizure of resources rather than invasion.

To take stock of the war’s effect, Coordinator Jinjiro ordered a huge national census, whose purpose was twofold. First, it would measure the toll taken by three decades of fighting. Second, the census would identify the thousands of people who might have escaped the realm’s usually meticulous record-keeping because of the war’s chaos. The Coordinator was especially keen to see everyone accounted for and wrapped back into the legal straitjacket that is Kurita society.

Another consequence of the war was the loss to the Combine of all its major shipyards capable of manufacturing JumpShips. Only two shipyards survived the war because of their distant locations in the Pesht Military District. Some BattleMech manufacturing facilities, were also destroyed, but the two major ‘Mech factories on Luthien and Alshain had survived, as had several major subcontractors. The other Houses had suffered almost as much to their ‘Mech production plants.

A particularly devastating result of the war was the loss of many water purification plants and the factories to build them. Once again, the availability of fresh water affected many important activities. Though the Combine wanted to rebuild industries, its leaders knew it would be futile in areas lacking enough fresh water for their needs. This forced the abandonment of some reconstruction efforts or the relocation of factories to planets deeper into the realm, which cost more in terms of money and time.

On the brighter side, the Draconis Combine had managed to acquire some territory. A total of 26 major planets had been won: 19 from the Lyran Commonwealth and 7 from the Federated Suns. Some of these worlds were prizes rich in natural resources. The government of the Draconis Combine used the acquisition of these worlds as proof that they had won the war. They wanted to blur from memory as quickly as possible the Kurita military’s retreat from the forces of House Davion.

Of all the regions in the Draconis Combine, the Benjamin and Dieron Military Districts had been hit hardest. Both the Lyran Commonwealth and the Federated Suns had hit Dieron, destroying some 60 percent of the district’s industrial capabilities.

Purging

Lord Jinjiro Kurita was not well pleased with the overall performance of the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery, and was particularly ashamed of its virtual collapse in the Federated Suns. He also saw the need to review interservice cooperation, for its lack had resulted in the loss of several key battles.

Though Jinjiro was sorely tempted, he carried out only a relatively small number of executions. Instead, he demoted to the peasant soldiery those officers who had failed in their duty to the Draconis Combine. The few who had actually pleased the Coordinator were promoted, most going to the military academies to train the coming crop of officers.

Politically, the government of the Draconis Combine fared no better. Many district governors and civilian district leaders had shown poor foresight in preparing for the war and so had failed to provide enough protection to defend their resources from enemy attack. These dishonored politicians suffered fates similar to that of their military counterparts, and many ended up shoveling Thrax manure in the arctic wastelands of Kurita space.

Second Succession War

Caution in the quiet
summer twilight. War is peace
when enemies rest.

—Popular haiku propaganda


After the completion of his census, Jinjiro quickly organized reconstruction efforts. By nationalizing the few remaining private heavy industries and personally taking charge of the effort to rebuild several key weapons industries, he had control over his realm’s industry and economy for the next decade. He considered the reconstruction to be a kind of war in itself, and demanded that everyone else view it the same way. When not overseeing construction or production, he could usually be found supervising the purification of the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery.

The formation of the People’s Reconstruction Effort was one of Jinjiro’s proudest achievements. The PRE became the ruling board and coordinating bureau of the government’s various military, economic, scientific, and political reconstruction efforts. To head the PRE when he was not actively involved, Jinjiro appointed his half-brother Zabu Kurita.

Under Zabu’s guidance, the PRE became a textbook example of what unity of purpose can accomplish. Zabu’s official position as PRE Coordinator was second in importance only to Jinjiro himself. To assist him were five lesser coordinators, each more or less representing one of the pillars of the Draconis Combine.

Zabu’s main focus of reconstruction centered on the preservation of knowledge. As a well-educated man, he had been horrified by the destruction of many universities, including his alma mater, Ashio University. As PRE Coordinator, he won from his half-brother the right to establish the PRE Academy on Dover, a planet in the Benjamin Military District.

The PRE Academy was to be staffed by professors and teachers who had lost their teaching posts to the destruction of war. The faculty would also include visiting industrialists, engineers, technicians, and mechanics from undamaged factories that could spare them to help others rebuild. The PRE Academy would attempt to preserve as much knowledge as possible by creating an enormous library and acting as a free consultation group for efforts to rebuild.

Though a noble and grand scheme, the Academy met opposition from both the military and the ISF even before it opened its doors. Those two agencies had grave reservations about how all this information was to be disseminated to anyone who asked. Zabu patiently explained that only corporations and groups whose loyalty was proven would be allowed to use the Academy’s resources. It was not until Jinjiro backed his brother that the way cleared for the opening of the Academy.

Snakes And Sneaks

Hey, as far as I’m concerned, those snakes could take a PPC cannon and ram it up their alimentary canals. They cheated us, starved us, then expected us to fight troops twice our size! They don’t want mercenary units to fight for them. They want animated corpses who will follow their directions and walk into meat grinders.

—Captain Silvia Srec, commander of the mercenary Srec’s Wrecks, commenting on their employment difficulties with the Draconis Combine, 2941


In 2825, the Paul Bunyan Regiment, a mercenary unit of MechWarriors from the Regular Army as well as from several Periphery realms, rebelled against the Draconis Combine. Stationed on the Kurita world of Zlatous, the unit had every reason to feel ill-treated by its employers. Though the Paul Bunyan Regiment had served as the rallying point for the retreating Kurita units of the Galedon District in the latter part of the war, the Office of Professional Soldiery Liaison (the department within the DCMS that handled relations with mercenary units) was not even bothering to pay the unit’s salaries now that peace had come.

In 2822, the DCMS announced a new, totally optional system of procurement for mercenary units. On the surface, the system seemed quite air. Instead of having to request supplies, the new system allowed an increase of the mercenary unit’s pay so that they could buy supplies directly from the Procurement Division of the military. The Paul Bunyan Regiment, along with most of the other merc regiments in the Draconis Combine, agreed to the new system.

It did not take long for the regiment to realize that they had been conned. Their pay increase did not nearly cover the expense of buying supplies. As a result, the mercenary unit went deeper and deeper into debt to the Procurement Division. In an effort to work their way out of the situation, the regiment was forced to take on more and more missions. That, in turn, created a need for more supplies, which caused more debt, which created the need to carry out more missions, and so on.

In June 2825, the Paul Bunyan Regiment had had enough. Its units struck at warehouses on Zlatous, seizing what equipment it could for their weapons. Food warehouses were also a prime target, because most of the unit’s members had been forced to cut back on their ration chits.

Though the ISF had taken note of the regiment’s growing discontent, their violent actions did surprise the Kurita government. In reaction, Jinjiro ordered the destruction of as many of the mercenary unit’s DropShips as possible, along with the capture and seizure of their JumpShip. He then ordered in the nearby 5th and 9th Galedon Regulars to punish the rebellious unit.

Deprived of a way off Zlatous, the Paul Bunyan Regiment dug in and prepared to face the coming Kurita force. It took the Kuritans two months to destroy the regiment, in the process laying waste to much of the planet. Some of the mercenary regiment did escape by seizing a Kurita DropShip and disappearing into the Periphery.

As a result of this incident, the Draconis Combine altered the way it handled mercenary units. It made the Company Store syndrome more subtle, so that it took a merc unit longer to sink into debt with the Combine. It also meant that it took longer before the unit realized what was happening. The DCMS perfected this system to the point where several mercenary units were eventually forced to sell themselves into the DCMS in order to pay off their debts.

Though the other Successor Houses do not necessarily treat mercenary units very well, none make such a concerted effort to subjugate their mercs. The Combine either ignores the needs of a unit to avoid having to squander its own precious supplies or money, or else it attempts to entangle the unit in a web of debt.

Gearing Up

Why break the peace? Because the First War solved nothing. Our fate has yet to play itself out. Our destiny as rulers of the known universe is unfulfilled.

—From ComStar Interview #32 with Coordinator Jinjiro Kurita, April 2825


By late 2824, Jinjiro’s mental health had deteriorated to the point that he was lucid and in control only part of the time. His maniacal episodes were increasing in frequency, duration, and intensity. Whenever the Coordinator showed signs that one of these fits was coming on, his aides immediately evacuated the Throne Room, locking and bolting it from without. Sometimes it was hours before the screams and ranting of the leader quieted enough that they dared to open the door again.

After several warlords and high-ranking members of the government had a doctor secretly examine the Coordinator during one of his dark periods, they learned that there was no cure for Jinjiro’s madness and that he could be expected to go completely insane within the next decade or so. Jinjiro himself learned about the secret examination and the doctor’s prognosis through the ISF, which was still loyal to him. Instead of immediately and characteristically ordering some bloody revenge, Jinjiro Kurita began to consider his options carefully and methodically.

He might have retired from rulership, or even committed suicide, but that would have left Zabu Kurita as his most likely successor. Because Zabu was more an intellectual than a military man, the generals of the DCMS did not think much of him. With so much depending on united efforts by the government and military, Jinjiro felt that it would be unwise for him to withdraw just then. Instead, he began to examine tapes of his psychotic spells. Even in his darkest moments, it seemed that he always managed to hang onto the single thread of directing the military.

The conclusion that Jinjiro Kurita drew from this self-scrutiny would rock and reshape the Inner Sphere yet again. His decision was to spend the next decade strengthening the Draconis Combine by using the one skill that seemed to transcend even his periods of madness. Jinjiro Kurita decided that he would start another war.

Divine Wind

Mission Elapsed Time—00:18:23.34

Glory to the Arm of the Dragon. Drop proceeding as planned. Heat shell cracked and pieces dispersed as expected, hopefully jamming the sensors of the Steiner military presence on Maestu. The auto-Drop systems on the ‘Mechs of my lance members seem to be working well. Only Unproductive Metsuko’s Stinger is deviating off reentry path, but not seriously. Time to touchdown is two minutes, forty seconds. Expected to be within three kilometers of the Steiner water purification plant.

Mission Elapsed Time—00:25:02.23

Light flak bearing zero-niner-niner. Likely to be a couple of autocannons and a laser battery. They are not in path, and so have ordered lance to avoid and disregard. Unproductive Mitchell is having trouble remembering how to work the elbow joint of his Phoenix Hawk or else the actuator has failed. Tough to tell, because all the Unproductives ‘Mechs are such piles of guano...

Mission Elapsed Time—00:29:19.99

Just picked up blips of what can only be Steiner garrison ‘Mechs. Computer estimates one assault, two medium, and one light in size. Trouble is they’re right in our path. No going around. For the greater glory of the Dragon...

Mission Elapsed Time—00:31:23.32

Harrison? Pattern fire on my count. Group, on my count, execute the Dive-Drive Maneuver. Mitchell, Metsuko, and Harrison—you’ll be the dives. Cover fire for one, and only one minute only. Rachter, you and I will be the drives. Remember, don’t concentrate all your fire on just one opponent. Hit them all if you can to stun them into letting you drive past.

Hit your ChemCourage, group. What? Yeah, it’s a hell of a way to win salvation. But just think, if you survive, you’ll be heroes and citizens. Might even get to shake the Coordinator’s hand. Ready? O. K., men, there they are. Dive, NOW! For the greater glory of the Dragon!

Mission Elapsed Time—00:33:36.01

—Transcript from Mission Log of Lieutenant Hevly Gomes, Lance Leader of Chain Gang 23 in the strike against the Lyran Commonwealth world of Maestu

Chain Gang Missions

The fact that the Draconis Combine was willing to part with so many ‘Mechs-however poor were the conditions of many of them-shows how important were the Combine’s Chain Gang missions. Jinjiro intended that they would seriously r-e-t-a-r-d and damage the reconstruction efforts of his neighboring realms.

For the most part, he got what he hoped from the three regiments of convicts, Unproductives, and misfit officers. These men and women received only rudimentary ‘Mech training, with only a few lance formations and maneuvers for practice. Because so many were undisciplined, the pilots had to be strapped into their BattleMechs and given huge doses of ChemCourage, a favorite Kurita battle stimulant, before they would go on the missions.

Even with the incentives of freedom, citizenship, and money, many members of the Chain Gang Missions surrendered at the first sight of a Steiner or Davion ‘Mech. On the other hand, many of these inadequately trained social misfits, in their inadequately prepared ‘Mechs, actually completed their mission to lay waste to an industry.

On both the Davion and Steiner borders, the enemy had halted reconstruction efforts in favor of devising new security procedures to protect key targets. The Lyran Commonwealth lost four months and the Federated Suns lost two in the process. Kurita considered this a victory, despite the loss of so many BattleMech parts.

Though their superiors had promised the Chain Gang Mission members many rewards, the Kuritans never had the least intention of retrieving any survivors of a Chain Gang action. After the Kurita JumpShips and DropShips brought the teams in, they immediately left the system for good.

The Minnesota Tribe And The Chahar Profit

In late 2825, the Minnesota Tribe made its first appearance in the Draconis Combine with a raid on the world of Svelvik. This previously unknown ‘Mech unit of nearly regimental strength showed considerable skill in besting the planet’s meager garrison troops. Refusing any communications, they simply took what they needed, and then left Svelvik without further bloodshed.

What intrigued Jinjiro most in the reports of this unknown unit were that their impeccably maintained ‘Mechs were freshly painted in Regular Army colors. It was Zabu who first noticed that the regimental patch was an outline of Minnesota, a geopolitical domain in the North American region of Terra. What Jinjiro also learned from reports was that the regiment was apparently escorting a fleet of cargo, commercial, and liner JumpShips. This fleet, with their elite escorts, apparently had some definite destination and was using uninhabited star systems to reach it at a steady pace.

The mystery group, by now known as the Minnesota Tribe, next attacked Trondheim. Because it was a prefecture capital, the 20th Rasalhague Regulars were stationed there. The ensuing battle was striking for the way the mystery ‘Mechs dealt with the Kurita ‘Mechs in strict Regular Army formations and tactics. Once again, the mystery group refused all attempts at communication, to the point that pilots of destroyed Tribe ‘Mechs killed themselves to avoid capture. The mystery fleet then jumped from the system, apparently headed for some uninhabited star system near Trondheim.

By now, the Kuritans believed that the Minnesota Tribe had to be a Regular Army unit, though they were not listed in any Regular Army order of battle. The possibility that the Minnesota Tribe might be an advance scout group raised the specter of the return of a very angry General Kerensky or his successor.

This made Jinjiro decidedly nervous. With much trepidation, he ordered the Rasalhague and Pesht districts to the highest state of alert. He also moved troops within these districts forward to the Periphery borders.

Meanwhile, the Minnesota Tribe struck Jarrett, again taking what they needed before moving on. This time the Tribe thwarted efforts to stop them when a large group of their AeroSpace Fighters intercepted and kept two battalions of Kurita ‘Mechs out of the battle.

While House Kurita’s attention was turned toward the Minnesota Tribe, the Lyran Commonwealth military took the Combine completely by surprise with a lightning raid on the Draconis Combine. What prompted the raid was the Combine’s earlier capture of the Commonwealth freighter named the Chahar Profit. A grain ship destined for the starving population of the Steiner world of Chandler, the ship made a mis-jump that put it above Darius and under the guns of Kurita fighters.

To win back the freighter and to rescue its crew, Archon Marcus of the Lyran Commonwealth brought together the remaining members of the famed Stealth ‘Mech regiment. With all of House Kurita’s attention diverted toward the Periphery, the Stealth rescue mission worked like a charm, much to the embarrassment of the DCMS.

The Minnesota Tribe made one last attack against an inhabited Kurita world. About a week after Steiner forces succeeded in rescuing the Chahar Profit, the Minnesota Tribe regiment hit the Kurita world of Richmond with a vengeance. Though it was inconceivable that the Tribe could have known about the large prison and slave camps on the planet, their ‘Mechs went straight for them. After easily overpowering the guards, they were soon freeing the many thousands of prisoners. Several DropShips then landed in the midst of the prison complexes to load up and transport all the freed prisoners offworld before the Kurita ‘Mechs could arrive on the scene. Though no one realized it for quite awhile, the liberation of the prisoners and Unproductives on Richmond was the last time the Minnesota Tribe was seen in the Inner Sphere.

Both the Minnesota Tribe and the debacle of the Chahar Profit rescue took a heavy toll on the Kuritans’ ability to control the thinking of their people. Though the government did its best to suppress accounts of the Minnesota Tribe, stories did spread, particularly through the lower classes. Like a vision of avenging angels, the Tribe had swept down to free political prisoners and members of the lowest class. The fact that everyone believed they were a Regular Army unit only added to their aura of offering divine assistance to the righteous and the poor.

These stories soon combined with accounts of the Commonwealth’s rescue of the Chahar Profit. Like a slow virus, the dogma that the Draconis Combine was destined to rule the Inner Sphere began to show signs of erosion from within.

Round Two Begins

My simple demand. Submit and I’ll spare your worlds from the Dragon’s claw.

—Haiku sent by Coordinator Jinjiro Kurita to the rulers of the other four Successor Houses, late 2829


The Minnesota Tribe incident and its corrupting effect on the lower classes forced Jinjiro to push up his timetable. In 2830, Kurita forces attacked the Commonwealth worlds of Chandler and Moore, while units on the Davion border went after Lucerne, Franklin, and Sahara V.

These invasion attempts were accompanied by smaller raids intended to keep the defenders of nearby worlds pinned down so that they would not be able to aid the target planets. Several deeper raids were also launched along both borders to assault major industrial centers.

Agents of the Federated Suns had managed to ferret out at least part of Jinjiro’s plans, however. When they attacked Lucerne and Franklin, the invading Kurita regiments found an equal number of Davion troops ready and waiting for them.

General Chosokabe Motochika, the Kurita commanding general of both invasions, saw that the chances of seizing these worlds were slim at the moment. He ordered a retreat off both planets, so that he could regroup his forces for another attack. Because of a lesser officer’s error, the Coordinator never received the required request for permission to leave the planets. This breach of regulations was unforgivable, and the ranking Kurita officer was held responsible, no matter who actually was to blame.

Instead of returning to the border, where he would probably have been invited to commit hara-kiri, General Motochika suddenly announced that he was taking his three regiments of ‘Mechs and a lesser regiment deeper into the Federated Suns.

The Dahar Incident

Dahar IV was a world left relatively untouched by the huge Kurita offensive of the First Succession War. As a result, its level of industry and technology remained far above that of neighboring worlds, which had been well trampled by the boot of the Draconis Combine.

Dahar was General Chosokabe Motochika’s choice for landing one ‘Mech regiment and three lesser regiments. The Davion planetary garrison was headed up by a ‘Mech regiment of Avalon Hussars. To the Davion commander’s surprise, the Kuritans approached with a delegation carrying a white flag and General Motochika’s message that he wished to surrender his troops and to defect to the Federated Suns.

Though the Davion commander was suspicious, the look of resignation in the General’s eyes and the Kuritans’ meekness at submitting to a physical search convinced him. Seeing that the surrender offer was genuine, the Davion commander ordered his men to disarm the Kurita soldiers and to seize control of their ‘Mechs.

As his troops moved out of their defensive positions, General Motochika’s other two ‘Mech regiments left their orbiting DropShips and dropped onto Dahar. That was the signal for the Kuritans already on the ground to pick up their weapons and begin fighting.

The stoic General Motochika calmly explained to the Davion officers that he had allowed himself to be the bait for this trap in order to atone for his sin of disobedience to the Coordinator. By sacrificing himself, he would restore the honor of his men, so that they might return to the Combine and perhaps keep their lives. The General then took a capsule from a seam in his uniform, swallowed it, and waited calmly for his own imminent death. His men, meanwhile, razed the planet Dahar to the ground. No longer was it a Davion world unscathed by war.

When Coordinator Jinjiro Kurita heard of General Motochika’s action, he smiled and nodded. By his own order, General Motochika’s troops were allowed to return to the Draconis Combine.

Jinjiro's Last Years

By the end of 2835, Jinjiro’s mental health had so deteriorated that several of his palace guards now accompanied him everywhere to restrain him during his frequent psychotic episodes.

Yet, in his lucid moments, Jinjiro was still a great military strategist. His decision to maximize his strengths using search-and-destroy missions rather than invasions had proved to be sound. Particularly successful were his raids against Davion industries on Kestrel, Strawn, Sanilac, and Listowe. Against the Steiner foe, his raids on the Lyran worlds of Kessel and Kobe also showed the cleverness of his planning. Only Jinjiro’s raid against the massive BattleMech facilities on Hesperus II had failed.

By now, Zabu Kurita was acting as the de facto leader of the Draconis Combine and was making most of the day-to-day decisions. Though Zabu showed Kurita shrewdness by building two new planetary supply centers into his budgets for the previous two years, there was increasing tension between him and the generals of the DCMS. The generals had always considered Zabu to be weak and soft, perhaps because Jinjiro’s utter ruthlessness was such a dramatic contrast. As long as Jinjiro continued to have confidence in his half-brother’s ability to rule, the generals had to remain silent.

No one knows who finally pushed Jinjiro permanently over the edge. What is known is that on February 14, 2837, a mysterious gift was delivered to the Coordinator’s private rooms. A few minutes later, his loud screams and the thud of thrown furniture could be heard from behind his closed doors. Few took notice because such scenes had become so common of late. They could hardly take seriously his shouts that billions of corpses were coming to get him.

When the disturbance went on hour after hour, Jinjiro’s family began to worry. His bouts of mania had never lasted so long or so intensely. Zabu finally ordered the palace guards, protected with riot shields and stun sticks, to enter the room.

Jinjiro attacked them immediately. Even though he was 90 years old, the Coordinator was a typically fit Kurita, trim and extremely strong. Jinjiro undercut one of the guards with a leg sweep, sending the guard to the ground with a broken knee. It took two hours to finally corner Jinjiro and control him.

Amid the rubble of the furniture, Zabu found a little doll dressed in the uniform of a Star League officer. This doll’s cherubic features were so angelic, so unforgivably pure, that it is said even the well-adjusted Zabu felt uneasy. Who sent it or how it managed to slip past the many guards and examiners charged with protecting the Coordinator is still a matter of considerable speculation. Nevertheless, it was this little toy soldier that had apparently driven Jinjiro irrevocably mad.

Whoever sent it had done his homework well. From that day on, Jinjiro was permanently psychotic, plagued by the vision of that toy soldier. For four years, he spent his days either heavily sedated or in a featureless room screaming in terror. He finally died in July 2841, having fashioned a noose from his own clothes.

Yoguchi Kurita

Of all the conspirators involved in the assassination of Zabu Kurita, only General Kozoma, the actual assassin, was executed. The others went unpunished. Though Kozoma’s death was ordered by the Grand Inquisitor, some disputed the opinion. Technically, Zabu Kurita had committed hara-kiri.

The Draconis Combine was in a hurry to return to normal, however. With the confirmation of Zabu’s eldest son, Yoguchi Kurita, most believed that a true Kurita was once again on the throne. Many were soothed by Yoguchi’s first speech, which was filled with comforting words about how the Draconis Combine would one day rule the Inner Sphere and how that would require a supremely strong military.

To assert his ability to command the DCMS, Yoguchi planned and launched an immediate attack against the Commonwealth BattleMech facilities on Hesperus II. Though the two Kurita ‘Mech regiments and five lesser regiments failed to destroy the factories, they did manage to come much closer to success than had any previous attack. This did wonders for Yoguchi’s confidence and also for his standing among the Combine generals. Confident of his control over the government, Yoguchi allowed the action along both fronts to grow somewhat quiet while he began plans for a major new offensive.

It was also at this time that Yoguchi attached the ISF to the Draconis military, an action that pleased no one. The military, with as much reason to fear the ISF as anyone else, realized that it dare not attempt to exert its supposed authority over the Combine’s secret police.

The ISF considered Yoguchi’s move to be an insufferable insult. Ever since its formation, the ISF had considered itself to be the personal servant of the Coordinator. Its members had served loyally, always correcting their rare mistakes with brutal swiftness. To now be placed under the control of the military, which the Metsuke considered an inferior type of warrior, was interpreted as a sign that Yoguchi no longer considered their services of great importance. This rift between the ISF and the Coordinator was the beginning of a long, complicated, and fateful series of power struggles between the two.

The Night Of The Sword

I, General Frederick J. Kozoma, member of the DCMS High Strategic Council and the Procurement Evaluation Board, do hereby assert that what follows is a factual and account of what transpired on June 23, 2838.

My reasons for acting as I did are numerous and perfectly reasonable. After Jinjiro’s illness forced that great leader to retire, Zabu assumed the throne.

Though I am sure he was an honorable man, Zabu lacked what has always made the Kurita family great—the desire to reduce his enemy to groveling at his feet. I doubt that Zabu even believed in the Kurita destiny. He certainly didn’t show any such Kurita breeding when he issued the 2839 Budget.

My fellow generals and I couldn’t believe it when we received copies of the budget. It called for a 4 percent cut in our military budget! I haven’t the serenity of my more Japanese colleagues, and so I was unable to control my anger and displeasure.

Apparently I was not the only one who felt betrayed by Coordinator Zabu’s actions. Three nights later, a group of my colleagues knocked at my door one evening. They had come to say that Zabu Kurita represented a clear and definite threat to the destiny of the Draconis Combine and that something had to be done about him before his pacifist policies spread further.

They appointed me to be the sword of their desire. The next night—last night—I concealed a special sword in my cloak. The sword was made of a special plastic that enabled me to walk through the metal and explosives detectors without incident.

I informed Zabu’s secretary that I was there to deliver an urgent message of military importance. The fact that the secretary dared ask me if it could wait until morning confirmed the rightness of the deed I had come to do. Why, in Jinjiro’s day, any man bearing important military news would have been ushered in immediately.

As it was, I had to wait some ten minutes in the corridor outside his door. When I finally entered, it was a shock to see one of his concubines lying among the rumpled sheets of his bed. Gods, Jinjiro would never have allowed a mere woman to stay a second longer than was necessary to service his needs-not that any of the concubines would have wanted to. This seemed one more proof of Zabu’s weakness. He must have been one of those “perfume men.” You know the type, the ones who actually lend a serious ear to what a woman might have to say.

All this so enraged me that I immediately drew my weapon. Seeing the sword did not affect Zabu as I had expected, however. He showed no fear, but only looked me in the eye and asked if I were acting alone or if I represented the other generals as well. When I told him that I was acting in accord with the views of most of the military High Command, he gave a slight nod.

He looked at my sword again, then got up and walked toward one of the room’s walls. Half expecting him to call for guards, I was preparing to launch myself at him when he reached up and pushed a concealed button. A portion of the wall slid back, revealing an array of the most exquisite swords I had ever seen.

He reached up for one, smiling slightly. By now, I was certain that he was going to fight me personally. Feeling a bit outclassed by the sword he chose, an incredible blade that must have been an ancient Japanese antique, I prepared myself to die. Just then, Zabu turned and offered me the sword with a smile.

Shocked, I took the blade without saying a word. He then asked to be allowed to send his woman away. I agreed and watched with more puzzlement as he roused her, kissed her most lovingly, and sent her from the room.

I could not help but ask how he was able to accept his death so gracefully. It was far from what I had expected. Zabu replied that he was above all a Kurita and so viewed death in its proper light. He said, too, that it would have been ridiculous to try to avoid his death when his own military was dead set against him. No matter what he might do—purges, executions, and the like—he would always have to consider the DCMS as the enemy. Better to let the inevitable happen now, he said.

I gave him all the ritual courtesies. First, he wrote his death haiku, which was a fine one. I then allowed him to shower and to change into his best uniform. Finally, he took a silk mat and laid it in the center of his room. Kneeling on it, he took a short sword—another antique with beautiful designs along the blade—and wrapped it in a sheet of clear, white rice paper. He then took the sword and laid the point of it on the skin of his belly. I raised my sword.

I still do not understand his ability to meet death so honorably. Could he have been a better man than we imagined?

—Confession by General Frederick Kozoma, taped by ISF agents

Planet-Hopping And Sunstroke

After spending a whole year in planning sessions with his general, Yoguchi devised a new version of the planet-hopping strategy that had proved so effective during the first war. Yoguchi’s version did not call for a major push deep into enemy territory, but used a slower, more methodical capture of those enemy planets closest to the Combine. The only exception to this steady application of strength would be a series of deep raids conducted away from the main offensive to keep the enemy guessing. Yoguchi and his generals laughed to think that soon the Draconis Combine would be seizing worlds from its enemies as easily as plucking kernels from a cob.

The offensive began in 2840 against the Lyran worlds of Caledonia, Lambrecht, and Harvest, which were at the extreme end of the border. A month later, just as the LCAF was beginning to muster a response to the invasions, the Arm of the Dragon made a heavy raid on Thorin, a world near Terra, and at the opposite end of its border. The Thorin raid turned against the Kurita invaders when a heavy storm stripped the faster Kurita ‘Mechs of their speed, leaving them at the mercy of the larger, more heavily armed Steiner ‘Mechs. The raid did accomplish its purpose of making the generals in the Commonwealth hesitate and delay in sending aid to the Periphery side of the border.

On the Davion front, things were not going as well. The Combine’s attempts to seize the Davion worlds of Tancredi, Anguilla, and Sturgis ran into a military defense that was more flexible and responsive than that of the Steiners. The Kurita heavy raid against Robinson, meant to freeze Davion reinforcements away from the three endangered planets, met with stiff resistance. The raiders were forced to withdraw much sooner than expected.

The situation on the Davion front went from bad to worse. Using the surge of reinforcements for the three planets as cover, House Davion moved its reserves up to the front lines. In late 2841, the Federated Suns forces launched its major offensive of the war.

Though the initial Davion strikes occurred along the border, two major areas of concentration suddenly swamped the Kurita generals. One was a major thrust apparently intended to take back worlds in the Kentares area. The other appeared to be an attempt to bypass, then surround, the Kurita troops attempting to take Davion worlds on the Periphery edge of the border.

Though the Davion attackers were having their successes, the Kurita generals were relieved to see that their troops were retreating in a much more orderly fashion than during the first war. This allowed the DCMS to withdraw and to launch a well-planned counteroffensive.

Roweena Kurita

In the bright sunshine one should fear small spiders. Death’s agents may not be big.

—Poem found among Roweena Kurita’s personal effects


Roweena Kurita was Yoguchi’s younger sister. Intelligent and astute, she saw clearly the effect of placing the ISF under the control of the DCMS. An ambitious young woman, Roweena took advantage of the Metsukes’ hurt pride and began to curry favor with them.

When her brother appointed her as Coordinator of the People’s Reconstruction Effort in 2841, she used the powers of her post to aid the ISF. In the beginning, she asked little in return. After 2842, however, she began to request the ISF’s assistance. The ISF leaders agreed to help her because Roweena’s schemes revolved more around accumulating wealth than seizing power. She loved luxury and seemed to have an obsession for collecting rare art objects.

In return, Roweena gave the ISF important access to the far-reaching network of the PRE, which had become a secondlevel bureaucratic communication system. As the people of the PRE came to realize that the ISF had intimate knowledge of their actions, the reconstruction of the Draconis Combine began to operate even more effectively than before.

Divine Sacrifice

I know of no better way to end one’s life than upon the upthrust bayonet of my enemy, for close behind would be my comrades, ready to avenge my death. And before me would stretch Paradise. There I will feast on heavenly manna and sit in the presence of Him, the Most Wise.

—Coordinator Yoguchi Kurita addressing a group of Azami warriors, 2843


The Davion offensive had managed to gain four Kurita worlds by the early months of 2849. Though they had met greater resistance than expected, the Davion High Command was confident that progress would continue apace.

For his part, Coordinator Yoguchi was beside himself with anger. To see his offensive thwarted by the audacious actions of the Federated Suns was more than an embarrassment. It was an insult to his family’s destiny. If it had not been for the Combine’s victories on the Commonwealth front, including the complete extermination of an elite Lyran BattleMech regiment by his son Hugai, Yoguchi would have given serious thou ht to suicide.

Instead, when the Coordinator read reports saying that House Davion had apparently chosen Tishomingo as its next target, Yoguchi decided that he would personally lead the planet’s defense.

Tishomingo was one of those worlds that had escaped the ravages of the first war because it lacked any heavy industry. Agriculture was the planet’s main worth. Its temperate atmosphere, abundant water supply, and good soil made the planet ideal for large-crop production. Because the first war had destroyed many water purification plants and the current war was busy trying to destroy the rest, Tishomingo and its abundant fresh water had suddenly become a prize target.

With the scarcity of usable farm machinery also created by the first war, the Tishomingo population had been increased to a relatively high level for an agricultural world. Several of the largest family groups had always been fanatical supporters of the Kuritas, and the presence of a large number of ISF agents helped keep the rest loyal. As a result, the civilian militia units, composed of a fair number of veterans from the DCMS, were well-organized, if not well-armed. Added to this were three regiments of armor and three more of infantry.

When Yoguchi Kurita landed on Tishomingo, he brought with him the 4th Sword of Light and three other lesser regiments. Though most of his generals did not consider the number of regiments now on the planet to be sufficient, Yoguchi was confident. What he did not realize was that Tishomingo had become a major objective of the Federated Suns’ offensive because food and water had grown so scarce in the Davion region nearby. To achieve this major offensive target, House Davion was willing to put up a total of 20 regiments, four of which were ‘Mech regiments.

The offensive was launched in typical fashion, with the incoming DropShips battling the planet’s aerospace defenders. Then came the actual dropping of Davion ‘Mechs onto the planet. Though the campaign was to last for three months, the outcome might have been predicted in the first few moments. Just after dropping onworld, a battalion of ‘Mechs totally disrupted Coordinator Yoguchi’s headquarters, forcing him to flee into the surrounding heavy forests.

Mopping up the planet was the Davion ‘Mech units’ main concern for the next month. Having taken care of the last Kurita ‘Mech, three of the four Davion ‘Mech regiments left Tishomingo. This mistake proved to be fatal.

If the Davion leaders had realized that they had almost killed the Coordinator of the Draconis Combine, they would never had left Tishomingo with only a single ‘Mech regiment to hold it.

The Kurita military believed that their Coordinator was dead, for that was the report of his second-in-command. For some time, no one knew that their leader was alive, well, and very angry on Tishomingo. While awaiting rescue, Yoguchi Kurita had organized the civilian population to resist their conquerors.

For the next several months, the entire Davion garrison was almost forced to retreat inside its military bases for fear of being shot at, blown up, or poisoned. The local population’s fanatical willingness to give up their lives shocked the Davion soldiers. That Yoguchi Kurita was orchestrating the guerrilla resistance seems to prove that Kurita command skills may indeed be hereditary. Through a system of runners, he communicated his orders to various fighting commanders.

By virtue of her position as head of the P RE, Roweena Kurita became de facto leader of the Combine, like Zabu before her. Seeing how systematically the people of Tishomingo were resisting the Davion invaders, she began to suspect that it was the result of her brother’s clever handiwork. On a hunch, she decided to organize a military campaign to rescue whomever was directing the work of killing off Davion soldiers.

Back on Tishomingo, a surprise Davion patrol had discovered Yoguchi Kurita when it swept through his forest hideaway. Though he managed to escape, the Davion invaders had recognized him as the leader of the Draconis Combine. Yoguchi fled to Urado.

Having been warned of his arrival, the military underground in Urado sponsored a religious festival. Using this as cover, the population of the city suddenly swelled to twice normal as the farmers from the surrounding countryside entered the city. Unknown to the Davion garrison in the Urado, leaders of the underground were busy passing out weapons that had been stockpiled and hidden before the planet’s invasion.

When the Coordinator entered Urado, the people rose up and killed the Davion garrison before it could mount a defense. Then they erected barricades to block vehicles coming into the city and turned strategic buildings into impromptu fortresses. Urado had become a Kurita stronghold in a matter of hours. The first attempts by the Davion troopers to take the city failed miserably. They knew, too, that attempts to starve the city out would be useless, as it contained several fortified underground food and water ware- houses.

It took a week to assemble the battalion of Davion BattleMechs that would attack the besieged city. When the Davion forces struck, they were met by civilians carrying out many desperate guerrilla actions. Despite the Uradoans’ courage and fierce determination to protect their ruler, it was soon obvious that they would not be able to prevent House Davion from capturing Yoguchi.

The rescue force sent by Roweena Kurita landed on Tishomingo just in time to save Yoguchi’s life. Suddenly faced with a major Kurita presence on the planet, the Davion defenders pulled back to await reinforcements. In the end, more than three million Kurita citizens gave their lives fighting against House Davion’s occupation of their planet. Fifty thousand of those died in the city of Urado. Coordinator Yoguchi Kurita accorded them the ultimate honor when he mentioned their courage in a speech.

The Sting Of Snow Fire

It had been a long and trying time for Yoguchi. He looked forward to returning to Luthien and Snow Fire.

Despite his outward toughness, Yoguchi Kurita had a weakness for women, perhaps inherited from his father Zabu. Though romantic love was not idealized or even much encouraged in the culture of the Draconis Combine, Yoguchi enjoyed failing in love every time a beautiful new woman caught his eye. He had collected many concubines already, but Snow Fire was, at the moment, his first choice.

He had first seen her in an ukiyo in the Rasalhague district, and knew he must own her so that no one else could take pleasure with Snow Fire. He had bought her contract and taken her to the Imperial Palace on Luthien. Now, with the fighting behind him for the moment, he looked forward to spending a long night with her as soon as he returned to the palace. Afterward, when Yoguchi had finally fallen asleep, Snow Fire took the knife she had hidden among her things and slit Lord Yoguchi Kurita’s throat. Then she laid an embroidered patch on the Coordinator’s body, where he lay in his bed. Finally, she swallowed poison, and lay down beside Kurita to await her own death.

Keys To The Mystery

Snow Fire was a Steiner assassin, of that there could be no doubt. She had been planted in the Rasalhague district by the Lyran Intelligence Corps years earlier to gather information and to be ready should the ultimate assignment come. Her many skills had served her well.

Apparently, she had also had her own personal reasons for wanting to assassinate Lord Kurita. Her lover had been a member of the 4th Royal Guards, a unit that had been destroyed by the Kuritans. The regimental patch she had laid on the Coordinator’s dead body was that of the 4th Royal Guards.

What has sparked considerable debate is how Snow Fire managed to get so close to Yoguchi without being discovered by the all-seeing ISF. The most plausible explanation is that someone high in the Combine government knew that Snow Fire was an assassin and simply turned a blind eye to the fact.

The Director of the ISF at that time was Malcolm Katsuyori, who had taken deep offense at the Coordinator’s decision to place the ISF under control of the military. Though he could not order his own minions to kill the Coordinator, it is possible that he might have allowed Snow Fire to become the Coordinator’s mistress, knowing full well that she was a spy and an assassin.

Roweena Kurita is another possible link to the mystery. As Coordinator of the PRE and confidante of Malcolm Katsuyori, she could also have been aware of Snow Fire’s secret profession. Her motives for allowing the concubine to fulfill her mission would have been more complex, but not at all political. Roweena did not seek power; indeed, she refused to take over as ruler of the Combine when Yoguchi died.

From evidence gleaned from private letters and diaries, we know that Roweena was deeply in love with some unnamed person. From other evidence gathered, it is quite possible that the object of her affections was Snow Fire. (Such an affection would not have been out of place in Kurita society, where sexuality has its place in life, as long as it does not interfere with the Code of Honor.) Roweena’s unnamed lover apparently spurned her advances. If that person was Snow Fire, the hurt and angry Roweena could easily have kept her own counsel about the concubine, knowing that the girl would soon be dead by her own hand.

—"Some Evidence Gathered on the Death of Yoguchi Kurita," ComStar Internal Bulletin, 2851

Divine Retribution

My brother was killed by a s-l-u-t of a Steiner spy. I refuse to rest until I have struck and taken something infinitely dear to the Steiner family.

—Coordinator Miyogi Kurita, in his eulogy of Yoguchi Kurita, 2850


Public reaction to Yoguchi’s assassination varied. The Combine propagandists described it as a heroic death, concocting a story that Yoguchi had died at the hands of a large group of assassins. Those who knew the truth felt deep shame that a lowly Steiner female had been able to murder their Coordinator.

In response to this dishonor, the Combine High Command decided to hastily set in motion a plan that their strategists had been fashioning with great care. The mission would strike at the very heart of the Lyran Commonwealth—their BattleMech facilities on Hesperus II.

The plan had two parts. The first was to use the remaining warships in the Kurita navy, along with DropShips and fighters, to overcome the Steiner defenses and then to blockade both jump points in the Hesperus star system. The second phase would be to starve out the planet’s defenders, followed by a massive ground attack.

The Lyran Commonwealth was at a weak point socially and politically at that moment in history. The Lyrans had just lived through the reign of a Jinjiro-like leader whose sadistic rule had left the realm in a state of shock. Now the Commonwealth was ruled by a rather shaky committee of three leaders who would make the major decisions until the rightful Steiner heir came of age.

The attack on Hesperus began smoothly, with a successful strike against both jump points, which Kurita naval vessels soon encircled. The Kurita forces just sat and waited as reinforcements and supplies flowed in. They knew that the three Steiner ‘Mech regiments on Hesperus were eating into their own supplies.

Six Kurita ‘Mech regiments and another 15 lesser regiments dropped onto the lightly defended portions of Hesperus II and began a slow, methodical campaign to exhaust the three defending Steiner ‘Mech regiments and five lesser regiments. The whole point of the strategy was to wear the defenders down rather than striking directly at the ‘Mech factories.

After several months of this, the Kurita ‘Mech regiments had succeeded in scattering the Commonwealth defenders from the mouth of the valley leading to Defiance Industries’ BattleMech factories. With great expectations and visions of glory, the Kurita ‘Mechs advanced almost to the door of the huge factories. Believing that victory was only moments away, the Kuritans were totally caught by surprise when the doors slid open to reveal a whole battalion of brand-new heavy Steiner ‘Mechs. The confused Kurita MechWarriors fell back under the hail of laser fire, cannon shots, and laser bolts from the ‘Mechs so new that they had not even been painted yet.

Pushed back beyond the mouth of the factory valley, the Kurita ‘Mechs were immediately hit by the remnants of the Steiner ‘Mech regiments. The Kurita offensive lost two weeks to this unexpected turn of events.

Matters had also taken a turn for the worse at the jump points. After several failed attempts to breach the jump points, the Lyrans had decided to make one massive attempt to fight their way past the ring of Kurita warships. Leading the charge was the LCS Invincible, a Star League-era battlecruiser that had been reduced to a mere museum curiosity orbiting Tharkad, the Commonwealth’s capital world.

When the LCS Invincible materialized at the Hesperus jump point, it totally dwarfed all the Kurita warships, which scurried away in terror. Having secured the jump point, the Steiner commanders ordered in the rest of the Commonwealth relief force, and they headed for Hesperus II.

The Kurita ground forces, having managed to finally destroy most of the Commonwealth ‘Mechs, were looking forward to punishing the MechWarriors that had thwarted them initially at the doors of the factory. What they could not know was that those MechWarriors in their shiny new ‘Mechs were ordinary men and women, some very old, some extremely young, who worked in the factories. They had volunteered to defend the facilities and had been hastily trained to pilot ‘Mechs, becoming known as “The Force of Last Resort.” Their first victory against the Kurita BattleMechs had been the result of sheer beginner’s luck, however.

When the Kurita ‘Mechs opened fire on them at their second meeting, the novice unit retreated in panic. Victory seemed imminent as the Kurita ‘Mechs were about to enter the factory complex. Just then, the guns and missiles of the LCS Invincible began to rain down on the Kurita ‘Mechs. Within minutes, the Invincible had mowed down most of the Combine attackers near the BattleMech factories.

The commanding Kurita general considered the Hesperus strike to be a marginal victory, however, because they had managed to destroy one BattleMech assembly line. What satisfied Coordinator Miyogi even more was that the offensive—successful or not—had cost the Lyran Commonwealth dearly. While the DCMS lost about 50 percent of its ground troops, the Commonwealth lost at least as many troops, including two veteran ‘Mech regiments. Both sides also lost most of their few remaining warships. The Commonwealth’s awesome LCS Invincible, possibly the last capital warship in existence in the Inner Sphere, failed ever to return from Hesperus II because its drive failed in mid-jump.

The Marathon Offensive

I don’t care how worn out the troops are. I tell you that both our enemies are on the verge of collapse. They can be ours if we apply ourselves and call upon that superiority that makes us unique.

—Coordinator Miyogi Kurita, in response to a request from the High Command to slow the Marathon Offensive


Coordinator Miyogi Kurita was a great believer in studying his opponents. To do so, he greatly expanded his agencies for gathering intelligence on the other Successor States. He also spent considerable time talking with ComStar representatives, hoping they would help him gain a clear picture of the nature and motivations of the other powers in the Inner Sphere.

After his semi-successful attack of Hesperus II, Miyogi’s analysis of current Steiner and Davion politics made him believe that now was the time to launch yet another major offensive. Convinced that both realms were too concerned with political matters to effectively respond, Miyogi planned to launch attacks that concentrated in strong, decisive thrusts. Though he regarded his predecessor’s “planet-hopping” strategy as effective, he believed it was too draining on resources. He was also hoping that his offensive would effectively put an end to House Davion’s offensive in the Galedon area of the front.

The generals of the DCMS had some misgivings about the Coordinator’s plan, however. Though it was true that planet-hopping offensives were a drain on resources, the Coordinator’s plan could turn out to be even more costly. They also had serious questions about the logistics of keeping two deep penetrations effectively supplied.

Nevertheless, the Kurita military launched its offensive in late 2854. The main thrust of the Steiner half of the offensive centered on an axis created by the Lyran worlds of Dehgolan and Kelenfold. The offensive axis on the Federated Suns border was Rochester-Saunemin.

Sword Of Light

In Buddhist legend, the Myoos are wrathful deities who drag unwilling souls to their salvation. Each Myoo carries a flaming sword that represents the radiance of Buddha’s teachings. This odd sense of salvation through the actions of a wrathful deity appealed to the earliest members of the Kurita ruling family. It rationalized warring upon one’s neighbors to save them from themselves. As the elite of the DCMS, the Sword of Light were always compared to the flaming sword of the Myoos.

To be accepted into a Sword of Light regiment, a candidate must have spent at least five years in a lesser ‘Mech regiment and have scored in the upper 5 percent of a rigorous battery-of political, religious, and military tests. Those who manage to make their way into a Sword of Light regiment are the crème de la crème. If he lives to retire no easy feat-a Sword of Light warrior can look forward to a life of comfort and glory. There have been twelve different Sword of Light regiments throughout the history of the DCMS. There are currently five.

—From “Unique Regiments in the Armies of the Successor States,” General Malvos Steinburg (LCAF ret.)

Early Successes

The first five years of Coordinator Miyogi’s offensive met with considerable success. On the Commonwealth front, the efforts against Dehgolan, Tukayyid, and Grumium were all successful, though a special assault company was destroyed while attempting to crack a Steiner stronghold on Grumium.

Though successes on the Davion front were less exciting, the DCMS did manage to throw the Federated Suns back onto the defensive, so that Davion had to put aside the goal of winning Kurita worlds. On that front, House Kurita had managed to capture only one world, but it was an important one. Robinson was the capital of the Draconis March. Though all essential personnel and records had been evacuated long before the appearance of Kurita BattleMechs, its loss to Davion had a definite psychological effect on both sides.

It was for this reason that the Davion military fought so fiercely to hold onto Robinson, which was little more than a minor agricultural world. Three ‘Mech regiments and ten armored and infantry regiments provided the planet’s defense. The invaders were composed of four ‘Mech regiments, all of them fanatical Sword of Light units, and ten lesser regiments. The Coordinator himself led the offensive.

The Davion defense buckled and crumbled beneath the weight of the four elite Kurita ‘Mech units. In the pivotal battle at Briarson’s Crossroads, a Kurita assault battalion managed to crush a Davion stronghold protecting a crucial mountain pass. With the stronghold gone, the Kurita forces poured through the pass. The Davion commander had insufficient forces to protect himself, let alone the planet.

Slow Down

By late 2862, the Arm of the Dragon was experiencing real difficulties. With aggressive campaigns on both borders, the supply lines had become too long and entangled. Already a light ‘Mech battalion from a Rasalhague Regulars regiment had been badly mauled on Emporia because it lacked sufficient parts and supplies. Even more distressing was news that many parts were becoming impossible to find. This led to cannibalism of parts as an accepted practice. The shortages were also fostering disobedience among the ‘Mech regiments, whose MechWarriors insisted on thoroughly searching all targets for usable parts and supplies before putting them to the torch.

The generals of the DCMS went to Coordinator Miyogi and humbly asked that he either stop the offensive or slow it down. To their surprise, Miyogi agreed.

With this, the Second Succession War came to an end. In reviewing their position, the Coordinator and his top military believed that they had come out on top again, with gains along both fronts. On the Commonwealth border, the Combine had managed to pick up seven planets, with the line of Orestes, Al Hillah, and Karbala forming the edge of a bulge into the Commonwealth. Along the Davion border, the Combine had succeeded in putting the Davion offensive to a halt and in reclaiming all their worlds. They had also managed to win three planets, Lucerne and Franklin being the limit of their conquests.

The Third Succession War

After a long chase, some predators often ease up and pretend to be tired, hoping to convince their prey that it can escape. In that moment of exhaustion, the prey’s concentration may lapse. Just at the moment, the predator puts on a sudden burst of speed and takes his victim totally by surprise.

—Coordinator Miyogi Kurita, in an address to the graduating class of the Sun Zhang Academy, 2866


By late 2863, relative quiet seemed to have settled over the Inner Sphere. Was it possible that after eight decades of fighting, the vicious wars were actually over?

A group of peace-makers came forward in early 2864. Composed mostly of businessmen from the Capellan Confederation and the Free Worlds League, the group proposed the signing of a peace treaty because they said war hurt everyone’s business except the Lyrans’ (who they accused of profiting from the conflict).

In the Draconis Combine, no one paid much attention to these “raving optimists.” The lull in the fighting was a welcome chance for the people to rest a bit and for the government to begin laying down supplies for the next storm, which was sure to come. Though the invasions and raids had virtually ceased, the Combine’s military strategists were busy analyzing how they might exploit any weaknesses they could identity in the Lyran Commonwealth and the Federated Suns.

Also during this time, a special ISF team conducted a secret investigation. Headed by Rajiv Sulevani, this small, elite squad was composed of ISF agents whose loyalty to the Coordinator was unquestioned. Their task was to determine just how strong Roweena Kurita had become and to investigate rumors about her “un-Combine activities.”

Shadow War

Roweena, who was now 69 years old, had been Coordinator of the People’s Reconstruction Effort for almost three decades. She had become something of a mother figure for the average citizen of the Combine. Her grandmotherly face stared down from a variety of posters admonishing the people that recycling, for example, was the honorable thing to do. Her voice came over the radio asking for blood donations. Her image could be seen on the holo as she inspected the construction of new buildings.

In many ways, Roweena had become a more public figure than her brother Miyogi, which was why he had come to fear her. What he did not know was that Roweena had considerable influence with the ISF, the very agency that was supposed to be spying on her un-Combine activities.

Her influence over the ISF had come about when the previous Coordinator had placed the ISF under the command of the Kurita military, an insult to the ISF elite. The astute Roweena had stepped in to stroke their egos and to allow the ISF to use the People’s Reconstruction Effort to gain access to all portions of the Kurita society. To say that this had led to Roweena Kurita becoming the unofficial head of the ISF would not have been too far off the mark.

Into all this stepped Rajiv Sulevani. A true believer in the Combine’s destiny and the greatness of the Coordinator, Sulevani had not approved of the growing coolness between the ISF and the ruler of the Combine. He had already dueled and killed a fellow metsuke who dared say that the ISF no longer owed loyalty to the Coordinator because he had abandoned them to the lowly Arm of the Dragon.

To strengthen his position, Rajiv began a secret assassination campaign to rid the ISF of its most anti-Coordinator members. It was not until four turned up dead in only a month’s time that the other metsuke realized that their enemy was within.

The conflict between the pro-Coordinator and the proRoweena factions became as deadly as it was confusing. A person might be shot, strangled, or stabbed on the scantiest of evidence and mountains of innuendo. Somehow news of the internal struggle leaked out to the public, which had begun to call it the Shadow War. For once in the long history of the Draconis Combine, the head found stuck upon the jitte was more likely to be the head of a metsuke than some poor citizen.

By 2865, more than a thousand metsuke had been killed in the Shadow War. Though Miyogi and Roweena kept up a semblance of cordiality during this time, both were struggling behind the scenes to get the upper hand. In a major escalation of the conflict, Roweena attempted to expand the powers of the PRE by absorbing a vital section of the DCMS Procurement Department. This would have forced the entire military to funnel their supply requests through the PRE.

The conflict between the two Kuritas was evolving into a clash between the Pillar of Gold, the established governmental structure, and the People’s Reconstruction Effort. It was an eerie time for the average citizen of various Combine worlds, for it was sometimes a matter of life and death to gauge which faction had the most control over their world. Paying homage to the wrong side was a quick and easy way to lose one’s head.

The DCMS, which had done its absolute best to remain neutral in this massive political struggle, was forced to react when they learned that news of the Combine’s difficulties was spreading to their enemies. The generals found themselves divided over which Kurita, and therefore which faction to back. To avoid truly splitting the realm, the High Command voted to postpone their decision for a week.

A 36-year-old officer named Taragi Kurita sensed that here was a chance to increase his power and prestige. In separate audiences with Miyogi and Roweena, he attempted to peddle his influence over the generals of the High Command. Both Miyogi and Roweena knew that Taragi was only a general’s aide who had not even the right to speak at High Command meetings. Roweena laughed in his face. Miyogi half-heartedly agreed to promote Taragi if he succeeded in swaying the High Command generals to back him.

When the High Command met to decide which Kurita to back in the Shadow Wars, Taragi rose and strode to the front of the room. He then removed from beneath his clothing the Dragon Medallion, the chain and seal that all legitimate Kuritas wear. He held the medallion up, as though it were a holy symbol, while the shocked murmuring of the generals became hushed. Taragi launched into a long and impassioned speech extolling the virtues of Miyogi and characterizing Roweena as kind of a witch.

Taragi’s speech lasted for an hour. When it was over, he returned to his seat. The vote was unanimously in favor of Miyogi.

The mobilization of the DCMS was sudden and swift. Aided by metsuke loyal to the Coordinator, the Dragon Commandos stormed key offices of the PRE and the pro-Roweena ISF. By January, the Shadow War was officially over.

The PRE was officially dismantled by decree of Coordinator Miyogi. Roweena Kurita was sentenced to house arrest, as suggested by Taragi He felt that executing her might have later repercussions, especially as there might be ISF agents still loyal to her in the hinterlands of the realm.

Taragi Kurita got his promotion. He also became the trusted advisor of the Coordinator.

A sad result of this political war was the destruction of the PRE University on Ashio. Though many blamed the pro-Roweena ISF for setting fire to the Grand Library, the surrounding villagers whispered among themselves that it was agents loyal to Miyogi who had started the blaze.

Is War The Natural State Of Man?

I say the answer is obvious. When is a man most keenly aware of life, most sensitive to its fragility and beauty than when he is most likely to lose it? What? Lovemaking, I hear you say? Well, that is true, but those moments are few, fleeting, and require far more emotion than most men are willing to invest No, war is a far better lover of men, her arms are always open.

—General Taragi Kurita, in a speech to the graduating class of the Sun Zhang Academy, 2866


In typical Kurita fashions the leaders of the Draconis Combine sought to punish all outsiders who had learned of their internal difficulties. Indeed, the full force of their wrath was directed at the Lyran Commonwealth. The main reason was that Commonwealth Archon Elizabeth Steiner seemed so wellinformed of the sordid details of the Shadow War that her diplomatic and economic actions managed to create even more tension between the two warring political factions.

The second reason was that the Arm of the Dragon wanted to punish the audacity of Lyran traders attempting to expand their influence deep into the Rasalhague Military District. This was a clear nuisance, made all the more so because the Lyrans found willing markets for their many goods. Food was a much sought-after trade item on many Kurita worlds, and this deeply embarrassed the Coordinator.

The third reason was purely military. Most of the Commonwealth’s industry was centered in the Federation of Skye, one of three major divisions within the Commonwealth. Because the Skye region was relatively small and lay close to Terra, the Combine High Command considered it to be a fairly easy target. It was also true that the Archon had relaxed the military vigilance of her realm, believing that a time of true peace was at hand.

In early spring of 2866, the DCMS launched attacks against distant Commonwealth worlds such as Chateau, Icar, and Steelton. Though these attacks gave every appearance of being full invasion attempts, they were a ruse and used second-line units with only a few ‘Mech regiments. The real focus of the Kurita offensive was the Federation of Skye.

The offensive progressed far better than the Kurita generals had hoped. Caught unprepared, many Commonwealth units simply retreated off their worlds without firing a single shot. By the third week of the war, the Archon solved the dilemma of how best to use reserves by deciding to hold them back from worlds not under attack. This gave the Arm of the Dragon free reign over many important worlds, which soon fell like ripe apples into their grasp. Kessel, Ko, Dromini VI, Aubisson, and Port Moseby all fell to the Draconis Combine during the early months of the war.

Military Hot Spots

The DCMS High Command had made one miscalculation in their strategy against the Lyran Commonwealth: they had failed to consider what the Federated Suns might do. The generals of House Davion had, with considerable foresight, made plans based upon the probability that the Combine would eventually go after the Lyran Commonwealth. The Davion generals intended to open their own maneuvers with a series of raids along the border to wear down the Kurita forces there.

In response, Coordinator Miyogi sent Taragi Kurita to the Davion front to act as chief advisor to the Warlords of the Galedon, Benjamin, and Dieron Military Districts, who were coordinating their actions against the recent upsurge of Davion activity.

The Draconis Combine received a boost to their efforts against House Steiner when emissaries from the Free Worlds League ventured to Luthien to discuss an alliance. Though he remained officially noncommittal, the Coordinator was encouraging enough that House Marik decided to go forward with their assassination plot against Archon Elizabeth Steiner.

The Marik assassins completely bungled the attempt, but the incident did signal the beginning of hostilities between the Lyran Commonwealth and the Free Worlds League. Now the already strained Commonwealth military had to worry about two fronts.

By the end of the decade, the Kurita offensive had made its way up to Marfik, and had easily overcome the Commonwealth’s weak counteroffensive at the other end of their border. The only points of concern for the Draconis Combine during these years was that the elite Eridani Light Horse unit signed on with House Steiner in 2872 and that the Stealthy Tigers, a private unit of the Duke of Tamar, were formed. Indeed, the Tigers would prove themselves equal to nearly anything the Arm of the Dragon could field.

Good Plan, Unexpected End

Taragi Kurita was born with an inner ear problem that gave him chronic motion sickness and prevented him from becoming a MechWarrior, aerospace pilot, or even a crewman on a space ship. He had, therefore, spent the early years of his military career delving into the intricacies of the DCMS bureaucracy. While others were learning to do double scissors side-swipes in AeroSpace Fighters, Taragi had been learning how to secretly manipulate the bureaucracy. Now that he was a general, that talent came in handy for siphoning off money and goods anytime he wished.

It was more a game to him than anything else, because riches and power were not the prime motivators of Taragi’s life. An intellectual of the first order, his real interest lay in solving problems. Being a Kurita meant that the problems he would like to solve were tied to the destiny of the Draconis Combine. He also had a mischievous streak.

Upon arriving on the Davion front, Taragi decided to see how far he could get by taking advantage of his position and using his great cunning. As the Coordinator’s official representative, Taragi was treated with respect and even awe by the three Warlords. With malicious glee, he soon embroiled himself in the politics between the three Warlords, secretly pitting each against the others. At the same time, he was also examining the procurement system of the front like a puppet master examines a new puppet.

Within a year, the bureaucracy was a snarl all along the Davion front because of Taragi’s deft manipulations. The three commanding generals were fighting among themselves, with each blaming the other for his poor supply situation. Militarily, the Federated Suns took advantage of the situation by attacking and seizing three worlds. The only Kurita commander who was able to pull any victories from the mess was Taragi

In 2885, the Davion raids against the major supply points at Towne, Mara, New lvaarsen, and Rowe were all successful, mainly because Taragi had made sure than these supply depots were ill-protected. After the Davion raids, he went to Luthien to report to the Coordinator on the total incompetence of the three commanding generals on the Davion front. Though he never blamed anyone specifically, Taragi’s report made it clear that he believed the Davion front should be commanded by a single general, namely him.

After listening to the report, Miyogi thanked Taragi for his valuable service to the Draconis Combine. He went on to say that he agreed with Taragi’s idea of single commander of the Davion front. Indeed, Miyogi had already selected someone for the job-his own son, Jon Kurita.

The Rise Of Taragi

General Taragi Kurita felt deeply humiliated when Jon Kurita became his superior on the Davion front. It was perhaps even harder to bear because he had been so sure that the appointment would go to him. Perhaps it was this insult that suddenly galvanized Taragi’s vague ambitions into a sharp and clear lust to reach the pinnacle of the Draconis Combine.

He knew immediately where to turn. Roweena Kurita, now over a hundred years old, had been living out her house arrest in grand style. When Taragi came to visit her with a request for assistance and advice on how to win the Coordinatorship, Roweena saw her last chance to strike out at her brother.

What Roweena gave Taragi was a greater access to the ISF. Despite Miyogi’s many purges to rid the metsukes of pro-Roweena elements, a few of them had managed to escape detection. Though they were not many, they had kept in touch with Roweena and now gave Taragi access to secret information.

Roweena also gave Taragi good advice, saying that it would be best to discredit Jon Kurita first. If Taragi could do that, then Miyogi would have to replace Jon with Taragi. If he tried to retain him as commander, it would anger the DCMS, whose leaders cannot abide an incompetent ruler. Either way, Taragi would benefit.

General Taragi took Roweena’s advice to heart. As second-in-command of the Davion front, he began to manipulate the bureaucracy secretly so that sufficient supplies did not reach the 3rd Sword of Light regiment on the vitally important world of Robinson. Added to the lack of supplies, particularly ammunition, was the substantial force of Davion guerrillas who generally made life difficult for the Kurita occupation forces on Robinson.

It was not long before the Federated Suns recognized that the elite Kurita regiment’s supplies were low. In late 2891, a large invasion force of Davion ‘Mechs, tanks, and infantry landed on Robinson. Now, when a consistent flow of supply was most needed, Taragi secretly manipulated the procurement routes so that the planet received nothing for a month. Seeing that they were in deep danger of running out of ammunition for their guns and parts to repair their ‘Mechs, the Sword of Light Mech regiment was forced to retreat off the planet. Robinson fell soon afterward.

The commanders of the Sword of Light have always had considerable unofficial influence because of the elite status of their troops. When the commanding officers of the 3rd Sword of Light came angrily to Jon and Taragi, wanting to know who had caused the supply snafu, Taragi sprang his trap. Using falsified information, as well as the testimony of a supposed procurement officer (actually an ISF officer serving Taragi), Taragi presented a mountain of damning evidence against Jon Kurita.

The commanders of the Sword of Light regiment urged the Coordinator most strenuously to remove John Kurita of his command and to put Taragi in charge of the Davion front.

The Coordinator’s position was now as precarious as Taragi and Roweena had hoped it would become. Miyogi attempted to rally his own support by calling on certain key generals to come to the defense of his son. To the Coordinator’s dismay, everyone had an excuse to stay neutral. This was due largely to a smear campaign being waged by Roweena’s friends within the ISF. They were spreading the lie that Miyogi was sending an offer of alliance to Prince Davion of the Federated Suns.

The final act was played out by Captain Hideyoshi Toyama, a young officer in the 3rd Sword of Light regiment. A zealot, even by Kurita standards, he intended to avenge his unit’s humiliation on Robinson. After managing to enter the Imperial Palace with a large bomb strapped to his chest, he came into the Audience Hall where Coordinator Miyogi was seeing petitioners. Toyama immediately detonated the device, killing 30 people, including Miyogi Kurita.

When news of the assassination reached the Davion front, General Taragi had his ISF contacts arrest Jon Kurita. In a mock-trial, Jon Kurita, the only male offspring of Miyogi, was found guilty of negligence and treason. He was shot seven days after his own father’s death.

The Unofficial Rules Of War

Since the beginning of the third war, a set of rules governing combat has been slowly evolving. As the high commanders realized that their supply of parts and resources was dwindling fast, they began to adapt to the scarcity. Even before engaging in battle, one side might realize that his force had no chance to win and so would withdraw to cut his losses. Such a phenomenon would have been unthinkable during the first two wars, both of which were famous for battles in which the winner was the last one left standing.

Early in the Third Succession War, commanders began to plan battles in clear and open areas away from cities because they wanted their troops to have the best terrain in which to use their precious supplies. This tendency to fight away from cities was soon reinforced by the scavenger mentality that seized all the realms. With parts and equipment often irreplaceable, scavenging through the rubble for supplies and spare parts in the aftermath of battle became almost as important as the fighting.

This trend did not sit well with many of the more conservative DCMS generals. Raised in the old ways, they expected war to be terrifying, gruesome, and dramatic.

When Taragi learned that some of his generals questioned the new way, he issued a booklet entitled The Katana Principle. Consisting of a series of the Coordinator’s observations, this small report outlined the religious and moral beliefs that supported the newer, more humane way of fighting. He wrote that the new style of fighting might not be as exciting as some of the older ways, but it was the only way to preserve the equipment and people vital to the Draconis Combine’s eventual dominion over all humanity. The brief essay ended with the reminder to the generals that bushido demanded obedience to one’s lord above all. The question never came up again.

—From "Taragi And The Katana Principle," Simone De Guthul, Precentor of Luthien

The Battle For Skye

Barren world. Stark green
hills and unkind snow. Death here
is a cold silence.

—Death haiku found on the body of a Kurita officer on Skye, 2893


When the Steiner world of Zebebelgenubi fell in 2891 both the Commonwealth and the Draconis Combine turned their attention to the nearby world of Skye. The planet was much more than just the capital of the Federation of Skye, it was the emotional heartland of many millions descended from Scottish-English ancestors. For them, the bleak green hills and cold, misty mornings on Skye were the closest thing to heaven outside of Scotland on Terra.

It was obvious to both sides that if Skye fell, much of the Lyrans’ will to resist the Kurita invasion would be lost. The LCAF was making every effort to prepare a defense of the planet, while the DCMS was making similar efforts to prepare a victorious invasion.

Three ‘Mech regiments and twelve lesser units defended the planet. Against them, Lord Kurita sent five ‘Mech regiments and 19 armor and infantry regiments. The Kurita soldiers encountered difficulties almost immediately after landing. Particularly disturbing was the population’s fanatical devotion to their world. Though the Kuritans were familiar with such singlemindedness in their own people, they had not known it could also exist among the citizens of an enemy realm. Almost every day, the Skye guerrillas carried out some act of terrorism or sabotage against the occupying force.

Many of the Kurita soldiers, especially the officers, came to deeply admire the determination of the citizens of Skye, despite the fact that their partisan actions were slowing the offensive. Weather and terrain also began to affect the fighting, further blocking the will of the Dragon.

It was the unpredictable winter weather in the capital of New Glasgow that caused the most setbacks. What’s more, much of the surrounding landscape was dominated by bogs and marshes, all just waiting to suck up ‘Mechs and machinery. Fighting against opponents who knew and had lived in these conditions, the Kurita officers had to slow their advance even further.

The crucial battle occurred at the Bannockburn Bogs. A Kurita ‘Mech battalion accompanied by a tank regiment was sent to take New Glasgow. After fighting off an attack from the 17th Skye Rangers, the Kurita forces were spread out over a large front as they began their march on the capital.

As night fell, the Kurita forces found their way blocked by a vast bog. They had no alternative but to stop for the night to encamp on a series of narrow concrete highways. When the sun rose the next morning, the Kurita officers saw that during the night Commonwealth troops had moved into the bogs along paths only they knew. Surrounded and lined up like targets on the narrow roads, the Kuritans were badly hurt in the battle. After being forced to retreat, they never came so near to the capital of Skye again.

Though the struggle for the planet lasted another year, the Battle for Bannockburn Bogs was the last time the Kurita invaders had the offensive advantage. The cost of the campaign finally proved too much for the new Coordinator, and in early 2894, he reluctantly ordered his troops off the planet.

Regrets

It’s not the having, but the getting.

—Old saying


Now 60 years old, Taragi had become the Coordinator of the Draconis Combine, but the achievement brought him no contentment. The pursuit of the goal had been far more exciting, especially now that he was burdened with the heavy decisions and responsibilities of the realm. Taragi dearly missed the days when he could immerse himself in the curious pleasures of maneuvering through the vast intricacies of the government bureaucracy.

The High Command was now looking to him to design a plan that would put a halt to the enemy’s recent gains on the Davion front. On the Steiner front, his men’s inability to take the planet Skye had forced a complete change in the offensive’s direction, snarling logistics and requiring difficult decisions. At home, bandit activity along the Periphery border was creating food and water shortages for the people of those farflung planets. The ISF, having finally discovered the last remaining metsukes loyal to the now dead Roweena, were awaiting the Coordinator’s decision on their fate. In addition to all these problems, there was the nagging fear that Miyogi’s three daughters might be plotting against him for killing their father and brother.

Faced with these problems, Taragi was tempted to retire on several occasions. Each time, the thought of his son Shinjiro prevented him for doing so. Though Shinjiro was almost 40 and seemed to be an excellent officer, Taragi felt that he was too politically naive to rule the Draconis Combine. Resigned to his lot, Taragi persevered, paying the price for the way he had schemed and plotted against others in his earlier years.

The New Century

As the 30th century dawned in Taragi’s realm, the new century brought with it news of a major plague in the Albiero and Rjarred Prefectures. Though the plague could be treated with an existing vaccine, both the treatment and the vaccine depended upon advanced medical facilities-something lacking in both prefectures.

When confronted with news of the plague, Coordinator Taragi had to make a difficult decision about how treatment might be carried out. Some advisors counseled that he place both prefectures under strict quarantine. Should anyone from those prefectures attempt to leave, their JumpShip would be destroyed to prevent spread of the disease, now dubbed “Albiero Consumption.”

A smaller, saner group of officials advised that to abandon so many people to certain death was an affront to the oath Taragi had taken on becoming Coordinator-that he would “do his best to protect the lives and well-being of those that aid me in my quest to fulfill the Kurita destiny.”

In the end, Taragi ordered that as much assistance as possible be given to the two stricken prefectures. In retrospect, his decision proved most fortunate. Three years later, in 2904, anew, cheap, and easily prepared vaccine was developed as a result of work in the Albiero Prefecture. Within another three years, the plague had been brought fully under control. Millions were spared by the Coordinator’s decision to actively combat the plague.

Ironically, the medical profession that the Coordinator championed with his trust during the Albiero plague would ultimately fail him. In late 2907, a latent congenital defect in his heart suddenly struck Taragi down. The doctors in Imperial City tried to save him, but an error during surgery ruined his chances to recover. He died, as did the doctors who made the mistake.

Operation Freedom

Shinjiro Kurita proved to be far more politically skilled than his father had imagined. Upon taking the title of Coordinator in 2907, he immediately took up the reins of government and dismissed his father’s counselors to show that he was in full control. He replaced them with a group of retired officers and diplomats who were among his teachers at the military academy. With this group of ex-professors and officers to assist him, Shinjiro began his reign.

His first concern was how to deal with the forces of the Bandit King that had been harassing the Kurita prefectures on the Periphery’s edge. All diplomatic attempts had failed, and to sit waiting for an attack was pinning down too many of his troops. In 2911, Shinjiro established a bounty system that encouraged hunting down the bandits. Open to all combat veterans of the DCMS, the program provided bounty hunters with surplus weapons systems, including a few battered ‘Mechs, and transport on JumpShips. Nicknamed ‘The Gray Dragons,” these bounty hunters did slow the rate of attacks against Kurita worlds along the Periphery.

In 2913, a more pressing military problem arose. The Lyran Commonwealth, having finally crawled out from under the Kurita offensive, was finally attempting an offensive of its own. It was named Operation Freedom after one of the worlds the offensive hoped to liberate in its first move.

Shinjiro lost almost two battalions of the 6th Sword of Light Mech regiments on Freedom. Pushed back by the elite Commonwealth 3rd Royal Guards, led by the Archon himself, the two Kurita battalions found themselves backed into a horseshoe valley with steep walls. The Steiner forces took further advantage of the situation by closing the mouth of the valley and then pouring a torrent of artillery fire onto the helpless Kurita ‘Mechs. Soon, the two battalions of the Combine’s best were no more. Even the death of the Steiner Archon in a freak ‘Mech accident soon after did little to blunt the loss.

The Combine generals had been quite surprised by the fighting skill the Steiner troops showed on Freedom and other worlds in the area. Though some shrugged it off as mere luck, others could not help wondering if the Steiner military had finally found a way to correct its flaws.

Tamar

When the arm of the Dragon lost its chance to seize Skye, the objectives of the offensive were changed to include worlds in the Tamar Pact. Though not as heavily industrialized as the Federation of Skye, this region had some relatively undamaged manufacturing centers that were still able to churn out their products. The region also had many agricultural worlds, which the Combine desperately needed.

Three ‘Mech regiments would attack the planet: the 2nd Sword of Light, the 20th Dieron Regulars, and the 4th Proserpina Hussars. Twelve lesser regiments would back them up. In command of the whole operation was General Tugima Travison, a wily veteran who had spent the last three years on the Davion front. He had grown tired of the stalemate there and was now reveling in the fast action of the Commonwealth front.

His invasion was successful, and he landed his troops with only half the casualties expected. As hoped, the Commonwealth troops were stunned by the ferocity of the attack and were still reeling from it. General Travison delighted in toying with the Steiner units like a cat with mice. The only thing that prevented a complete collapse of the planet was the Commonwealth ‘Mech units.

The Stealthy Tigers and two battalions from the elite Eridani Light Horse were especially inspired as they fought off the Kurita forces. As more of the defenders became motivated by their example, the Steiner soldiers began to fight with the same grit and determination as the defenders of Skye and Freedom.

With reinforcements from the LCAF pouring into Tamar faster than General Travison could keep up, his elation vanished as quickly as his initial advantage. By the beginning of 2916, General Travison had boarded a JumpShip back to the Draconis Combine. He was still wondering how the Commonwealth defenders had grown so tough.

The ISF Since The Shadow War

It is time for even the bitterest of brothers to lay down their differences to face an enemy common to both.

—Coordinator Shinjiro Kurita in a message to the Internal Security Force, April 2919


When members of the ISF realized that they had become nothing but pawns murdering each other in the Shadow War between two Kuritas, it took some doing for the ISF Director to control his people’s desire for revenge. In the end, the ISF reaffirmed its loyalty to the Draconis Combine, if not to the Kurita family.

After the Shadow War, the organization remained cloistered in its New Samarkand headquarters, avoiding direct contact with the government for the next ten years. This was also the location of the Black Dojo, a huge, featureless building that serves as the training center for the metsuke.

Not wishing to stir the wrath of the metsuke, the Coordinator did not try to pressure the ISF into returning to its more active former role. When contact between the ruler and ISF was necessary, the commander of the Sun Zhang Mech Warrior Academy acted as mediator. Though the ISF had withdrawn from Luthien, the organization continued to fulfill its obligations to the Draconis Combine during this time. Whenever the Sun Zhang commander passed on a request for their services, the ISF responded without hesitation. The main reason for remaining so obstinately separate from the government was to show the ISF’s displeasure at having been used so callously.

Coordinator Shinjiro Kurita was a far-seeing ruler. Recognizing that dwindling resources in the Inner Sphere would eventually put limits on even the Arm of the Dragon, he saw that the concealed knife or the poisoned drink might become the most efficient way to eliminate some future enemies. Shinjiro felt it was essential to restore the closeness that had previously made the Coordinator and the ISF such a lethal combination.

Shinjiro Kurita visited New Samarkand in 2921. Though his official purpose was to address the graduating class of officers from the nearby Sun Zhang MechWarrior Academy, his real purpose was to meet with the current ISF Director, Clarissa Indrahar, and her Council of Five.

Shinjiro And The ISF

The Dragon and Night Stalker
meet in twilight. Worlds shall
fear the results.

—Haiku by Clarissa Indrahar, in commemoration of the Davarapala Accords


The meetings between Shinjiro and Clarissa Indrahar stretched from the original plan of three weeks to become a six-month marathon. As a result, the two managed to hammer out a new accord between the ISF and the government.

The ISF’s main grievance was at being placed under the control of the Combine military. As a compromise, Shinjiro offered to make the Director of the ISF a full member of the High Command. In that way, the Director would have a say and a vote on what her metsuke would be asked to do.

This concession satisfied Indrahar enough that other points of contention were resolved much more quickly. The Davarapala Accords were signed in 2921.

ON TWO FRONTS

Due to the unexpected stubbornness of the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces, House Kurita found that its offensive needed more time and many more units than originally intended. The cost of supplies tagged for the Steiner front were mounting far beyond the Kurita High Command’s original estimates.

Because of the heavy activity on the Steiner front, the Kuritans had to pull some of their better units from duty along the Periphery; units of lesser quality went in to replace them. The various Bandit Kings took immediate notice of the changing of the guards and responded by attacking Kurita worlds with abandon. Though these attacks were often costly for the brigands, the handsome rewards more than made up for it. Of all the Gray Dragon bounty hunters, only retired.

General Ricardo Gillespie and his band (humorously nicknamed the “Geriatric Judge and Jury”) was really successful. He and his tank company entered Luthien carrying the head of the notorious Grace Quiggley on the tip of the command tank’s spike antenna.

Because so many men and so much material were being funneled to the Steiner front, House Davion was making progress in its own battle against Kurita. Especially on worlds near Terra, the Davion commanders were able to take advantage of the Combine’s need to keep the Steiner front so well-supplied that the Davion front was now under-manned and under-equipped.

Though House Kurita was winning more worlds along the Steiner front than they it was losing to the Federated Suns, the losses on the Davion front were especially disheartening and humiliating. Because the Combine commanders had always considered the Federated Suns to be their equal, every loss hit doubly hard.

The Marathon Offensive during the last years of the second war had convinced the Combine military that it was folly to attempt to sustain a major campaign on both fronts. In 2824, the Kurita High Command decided that as long as they continued to gain strategic advantage along the Commonwealth front, they would continue to devote to it the lion’s share of supplies and equipment. This was, of course, a major disappointment for the Kurita officers on the Davion front.

The Fly Paper Strategy

The Arm of the Dragon’s failure to capture Tamar proved more than just another humiliation for the Kurita generals. In one of the few truly clever strategic moves in the history of the Lyran Commonwealth, the LCAF High Command purposely left Tamar under-defended after forcing the last Kurita attacker offplanet.

Believing that the Commonwealth generals had just made a grievous mistake, the DCMS immediately attacked Tamar once again. As in the first invasion attempt, Lyran reinforcements arrived in time to drive away the Kurita attackers. Then, while the Kurita forces were retreating, the Lyrans pulled off most of their defenders in an open invitation to the Combine to attack again.

The purpose behind this erratic behavior was to tie up as many Kurita units as possible by tantalizing them with the hope of successfully invading Tamar. Every unit hanging about Tamar was one less to cause problems elsewhere for the Commonwealth High Command somewhere else. Though it did not take the Kurita officers long to understand this new “fly-paper strategy,” the temptation of Tamar, the capital of one third of the Lyran Commonwealth, proved too great to resist. For the next six decades, Kurita units would make periodic attempts to invade Tamar, only to be pushed back each time.

—From Blood and Tears: A Kurita Family History by Laura Smythe-Jones, Pesht National Press, 3000

Hugai Kurita

In 2925, Shinjiro Kurita, the 27th Coordinator, died in his sleep. The circumstances of his death were somewhat suspicious, especially as a security computer had recorded the presence of a late-night visitor to the Coordinator’s chambers on the evening of his death. The ISF and the Grand Inquisitor both investigated the matter, however, and pronounced that the leader’s death was due to natural causes.

Into the Coordinatorship stepped Hugai Kurita. Still young at 35 years of age, Hugai had just taken command of a regiment when his father died, forcing his return to Luthien. Despite his age and inexperience, Hugai managed to impress the Draconis High Command with his calm bearing and quiet manner.

Hugai had grown up a stranger to his father. Shinjiro, a man fond of the spotlight, was not one to share his few emotions with less than millions. As a result, Hugai had spent most of his life away from Luthien and his father. Though this estrangement had never seemed to be a problem, there was a streak of violence that worried his mother and sisters.

Hugai was not the eldest offspring of Shinjiro Kurita, however. Though his sister Necess was older than him, the generals of the High Command had purposely passed over her for rulership of the Combine. For one thing, they were prejudiced against the fact that she was female. Though there had been women Coordinators in the past, the bushido mentality had reinforced the second-class status of women in the Combine even at the highest levels. This did not prevent some upper-class women from holding important posts in the government or keep others from becoming MechWarrior and fighter pilots, but male chauvinism made it much harder for any but the most outstanding females to transcend their status.

Necess, however, had no interest in becoming Coordinator of the Draconis Combine. From her youth, she had been drawn to the arts of healing, which she believed were a more honorable pursuit than holding power over other humans. Her special interest was to rediscover lost medical techniques and technology, based on her training in medical sciences. Her work had already taken her to the other realms, much to her father’s displeasure. Being a most stubborn and intelligent woman, Necess had decided that political boundaries would never prevent the possible rediscovery of some valuable tool or technique of the past.

Xhosa VII

In the early days of Hugai’s reign, the Federated Suns invaded Xhosa VII, an important Kurita world. Rich in deposits of metals and chemical energy sources, the planet also served the Arm of the Dragon as a major transportation center for distributing supplies and fresh troops to half of the Davion front.

For the past decade, the Federated Suns had been involved in a major offensive against the Capellan Confederation. With most of Davion’s veteran ‘Mech regiments busy grinding the House Liao military to dust, the generals of the Combine High Command assured Coordinator Hugai that there would be little activity on the Davion front for the next few years.

Though it was true that Davion had concentrated most of its forces on the Capellan front, its officers were not happy with the lull on the Kurita front. Indeed, the Davion strategists had long been considering the possibility of invading two Kurita worlds that seemed to be prime targets.

With supplies tight along the front, the Davion generals decided to invade only the planet Xhosa. Three ‘Mech regiments and twelve lesser regiments would make the jump to Xhosa from the nearby Davion worlds of Olancha and Exeter.

Defending the planet were two regiments of Galedon Regulars and four lesser regiments, with Brigadier General Samson Sakamoto in command. As a warrior of the old style, Sakamoto’s career had been long and illustrious.

Hugai had served under General Sakamoto and regarded him with great fondness almost as the father he never had. As a personal favor, Hugai had asked General Sakamoto to take over command of the 12th and 17th Galedon Regulars, both of which had just been reorganized, and so lacked any regimental spirit.

Xhosa was a world of barren plains, interrupted by mountain chains and thick forests. The planet’s population had tended to cluster about the five major spaceports, leaving the rest of the planet only sparsely inhabited by loggers, hunters, and farmers. Because of Xhosa’s location as a transportation center, the DCMS had used it as a training facility for its less experienced regiments. In late 2929, the two Galedon ‘Mech regiments made the move to Xhosa.

The Davion attack came early the next year. Hidden among the heavy traffic of cargo ships, the Davion DropShips managed to make it almost halfway to the planet before being challenged and identified as enemy vessels. This gave General Sakamoto precious little time to prepare. He broke the 12th Galedon Regulars into companies and charged them with protecting the spaceports and cities. He intended to meet the main enemy force while personally in command of the 17th Galedon Regulars.

The Davion attackers proved too strong, however. They seized two of the spaceports during the first day of the invasion, and used them to bring in the rest of their units, supplies, and support such as Long Tom artillery units. In defense, both Galedon Regular units fought with extraordinary skill and valor.

The biggest blow to the Kurita defenders was the death of General Sakamoto. While heading up the 17th Galedon Regulars, he challenged an advancing Davion ‘Mech regiment on the Green Sands Plain, outside the capital city of New Xhosa. Though outnumbered and harassed by heavy artillery, General Sakamoto managed to outmaneuver the advancing enemy into exposing their command lance to him.

He then engaged General Mickertrick, the commander of the Davion invasion force, in ‘Mech-to-’Mech combat. By the time reinforcements from both sides had arrived, both the two generals were dead and their ‘Mechs transformed into hulks of smoldering metal.

Abduction Of An Acolyte

I’ve found that being a Kurita was a major hindrance to my growth as a person. I look forward to anonymity as a member of ComStar.

—Necess Kurita, in a public announcement on her intention to join ComStar, Luthien Peoples’ News Broadcast, 2931


Hugai took the news of General Sakamoto’s death hard. Though his warrior’s training allowed him to control his grief, those near him knew how the loss affected him. It was in this state that the Coordinator learned the news that his elder sister had joined ComStar. Necess had grown increasingly frustrated by restrictions placed on her travel. She was also aware that ISF agents observed her every move during her visits to other realms. Disgusted by all this surveillance, Necess walked into the office of the ComStar Precentor on Luthien and announced that she wished to join our Blessed Order.

Matters between ComStar and House Kurita became quite tense during this time. No Kurita had ever asked to join our order, and so the news about Necess spread like wildfire across the Draconis Combine, despite the efforts of the ISF.

Meanwhile, the Precentor on Luthien was attempting to verify that Necess truly had a calling to the Order. He was aware of her abilities as a medical archaeologist, which would make her a welcome addition to our medical sciences division. After determining that Necess was sincere, his main concern was that she enter our Order quietly. That proved impossible, however.

The Coordinator responded foolishly. In November 2931, he sent a squad of ISF agents to the ComStar Hospice on Luthien, where Necess was serving her apprenticeship as a medic for the Unproductives who visit us for food and board. Though the two ROM agents protecting Necess managed to kill four of the ISF agents before dying themselves, the metsuke succeeded in capturing and returning her to Imperial City.

After Hugai locked Necess in a wing of the palace and forbade her to talk to any of our representatives, Precentor Stephanie Hendriks immediately protested the foul abduction of one of our Acolytes and the murder of two of our ROM agents. The Coordinator countered by claiming that Necess had been brainwashed into joining the ComStar.

When she requested orders from Terra, the Primus authorized her, under the Emergency Powers Act of the Holy Orders, to deal with the situation as she saw fit. Hendriks’ first action was to contact ComStar Covert Operations to learn whether any mercenary unit was currently under contract with our organization. She was in luck. The Bandersnatches, a heavy ‘Mech battalion of good ability, had just secretly signed on.

The Bandersnatches boarded a ComStar freighter headed for Luthien. During the journey, they removed, painted over, or replaced all identifying marks on their DropShips, ‘Mechs, and uniforms, per our usual procedures. Once above Luthien, the DropShips of the Bandersnatches entered orbit and waited.

Precentor Hendriks had meanwhile entered into intense negotiations with Coordinator Hugai’s advisors in Imperial City. She was attempting to arrange a meeting between only Hugai, Necess, and her in order to settle matters once and for all. Hugai’s rash action had angered her, and she wanted to prove to him that he could not get away so easily with an attempt to cross ComStar.

Hendriks finally managed to obtain an audience with the Coordinator two weeks after the abduction. To get it, she had been forced to shut down the Luthien station for an entire day, which put the government into a panic. She met the Coordinator in the Grand Hall of Unity Palace, but Acolyte Necess was not present. When asked why, Hugai replied that he had no wish to see his sister manipulated by a “ComStar Witch.”

Precentor Hendriks laid out her demands. Hugai must re lease Necess Kurita to make her own decision about whether to remain with her brother or to return to ComStar. Hugai responded haughtily until Precentor Hendriks explained that Luthien and the Draconis Combine would come under an Interdict from ComStar if he did not agree. Hugai smiled and said that the Combine could do without our services, if necessary.

What he did not expect was the holo-link Precentor Hendriks had made with Colonel Dietrikson, commander of the Bandersnatches. In clear military terms, Colonel Dietrikson informed the Coordinator that his unit’s DropShips were just ten minutes from the Drop Window (the point from which ‘Mechs exit their DropShips), and just 25 minutes from Touchdown in and about Unity Palace. Precentor Hendriks added that the Mercenaries had explicit orders to rescue Necess and her or to ruin Imperial City in the attempt.

Coordinator Hugai realized that even with the massive air and ground forces at his disposal, the fast-approaching Bandersnatches stood a good chance of making it onto the palace grounds. At that point, things would get very violent very fast. With a scowl, he announced that Necess was free to return to ComStar as a symbol of the Draconis Combine’s undying appreciation of great service to the Inner Sphere. Precentor Hendriks bowed graciously and canceled the drop orders of the Bandersnatches.

Because Hugai had cooperated, ComStar did not attempt to further punish the Combine. Indeed, the Kurita leadership and ComStar have maintained cordial, if not friendly, relations since then.

The Steiner Quagmire

The truly odd thing about the Steiner front is that we win worlds, but each victory seems to slow us down and make us weaker. It is almost as though the Steiner worlds were an inert poison; the more we eat, the more they fester in our belly.

—Warlord Takeda Kenshin, Commander of the Rasalhague Military District forces


The loss of Xhosa on the Davion front made the generals of the Draconis High Command reexamine their military expectations on the Steiner front. In a year-long meeting held on Luthien in 2993, they discussed their operations there.

Though the Draconis Combine had seized almost 20 planets in their efforts against House Steiner, they had failed to capture two vital planets. The regional capitals of Skye and Tamar were both crucial to the Coordinator’s plan to force House Steiner to sue for a treaty. Though invasion attempts against both planets had failed, the Kurita generals still held out hope of taking Tamar.

After the failed attempt against Skye, the Commonwealth forces managed to push the Kurita troops off nearby Zebebelgenubi, which had been the Combine’s jumping off point for the attack on Skye. Now the Combine forces would have to use distant Alkalurops or Skondia as staging areas for future actions against Skye. The Draconis High Command agreed that would make everything much too costly.

The continual improvement in the quality of the LCAF was another topic of sober conversation among the Combine High Command. In the first and second wars and at the start of the third war, the Commonwealth forces had been rather incompetent, particularly among its officer corps, who seemed more interested in the cut of their uniforms than in strategy and tactics.

Though the vanity still existed, a sense of determination and self-confidence seemed to have infused the Commonwealth military .Now that the officer corps was actually willing to stand and fight-and with increasing skills, too-the lower ranks were also responding with rare acts of courage and heroism. This was bad news for the Arm of the Dragon, which had been used to seeing the Commonwealth troops cower or run at the mere flexing of its powerful muscles.

Decline And Fall

All the good omens that had accompanied Hugai Kurita’s accession had come to naught. Particularly after his sister left Luthien forever, he became completely withdrawn. Though many blamed Hugai’s lack of interest in running the Draconis Combine on the loss of his mentor and his sister’s departure from Luthien, it is hard to believe that this could explain the whole final decade of his rule. During his increasingly long bouts of indifference, Hugai spent most of his time moodily wandering the Palace gardens, with orders that no one must disturb his reveries. Without the Coordinator’s participation, the rest of the government could not create budgets. This, in turn, created severe problems for the DCMS and the DCA (Draconis Combine Admiralty).

As a result, from 2953 to Hugai’s death in 2963, the DCMS and DCA had to survive on budgets that were simply repetitions of the 2952 budget, the last one in which the Coordinator had been personally involved. This meant that the military industries had been churning out the same quotas of parts and supplies for the last ten years. Though this kept the military afloat, a decade-old budget also resulted in frustrations such as Techs finding left knee actuators for a BattleMech in the warehouses but none for the right knee. Needless to say, barter became the name of the game between units.

The only military units that could get most of the supplies they needed were mercenaries, as they had access to a whole range of legal and illegal means. For a time, mercenary units such as the Plague Boys, the Shady Ladies, and McGee’s Cutthroats were the best-equipped units in the Draconis Combine.

When McGee’s Cutthroats landed on the Steiner world of Alexandria in 2953, they found themselves initiating the third war’s biggest battle on the Steiner front. Seeing that the local units outgunned them, the Cutthroats called for help, which soon arrived. A simple raid soon escalated into a two-year campaign in which seven different ‘Mech regiments played roles.

This large battle was not the only action along the Steiner front during Coordinator Hugai’s depression. The LCAF finally made good their Operation Freedom when they took back Phalan from the Draconis Combine in 2952. So alarmed were the generals of the Kurita High Command that they began desperately to seek a way to bring the Commonwealth military down to their level. They decided upon another attack aimed at destroying the huge BattleMech facilities on Hesperus II.

In 2957, the ninth battle for Hesperus II occurred when two Kurita ‘Mech regiments carried out an almost suicidal mission. The Kurita DropShips, having made it past the Commonwealth air defenders, dropped their ‘Mechs as expected. In response, the Commonwealth ‘Mech regiments arranged themselves in prepared positions on the plains outside the mountain range that housed the factories. The Kuritans did not drop onto the plain, as had every other attacker in the planet’s long military history. Instead, the Combine ‘Mechs dropped right into the mountain range.

More than half of the MechWarriors who participated in the attack died when their ‘Mechs impacted on the mountainside. Glory of the Fallen Samurai banners were awarded to the families of those MechWarriors after the battle. Those who survived managed to severely damage the BattleMech factories before the Commonwealth defenders could arrive and drive them off. This heroic action crippled the factories, cutting Steiner ‘Mech production by at least 50 percent.

Hohiro Kurita

It is time for a renewal of that fire that made the Draconis Combine the unquestioned power in the Inner Sphere. Too long we have labored under false ideas spread to us from other realms. They are the concepts thought up by worms in human form, whose minds are corrupted by the weakness of emotion. We warriors know of only one emotion-devotion to the state. Those that feel otherwise are not true members of the Draconis Combine. They are the spawn of inferiors, and would be better off dead than alive in their haze of lies.

—Coordinator Hohiro Kurita, in an address to the graduating class of the Sun Zhang MechWarrior Academy, 2965


Hugai was a weak ruler who fell prey to depression and loneliness, but his son Hohiro was the complete opposite. Believing that his father and other recent predecessors had failed to live up to their duty of fulfilling the destiny of House Kurita, he devoted himself body, mind, and soul to the cause.

Hohiro was a tall man, whose imposing face and body made even his smile seem like a threat. As a regiment commander, he ruled by fear. Whippings were so common in his unit that anyone not scarred by the lash was probably either a new unit member or Hohiro himself. As a commander, he was a Kurita to the core, carrying out attacks with abandon, and preferring to execute a good plan today rather than to wait for a better plan tomorrow.

When Hohiro assumed the Coordinatorship, he immediately injected life into the moribund DCMS and DCA by appropriating funds for them from the already meager budget of the People’s Medical Services. Though this decision would eventually result in the outbreaks of a plague that would kill millions, the money did get a transfusion of needed parts to the Arm of the Dragon.

The Dragon Renewed

Dragons are renewed
with blood of lessers. Why must
the small pay the big?

—Protest Haiku written on the walls of Imperial City, 2978


The fact that Hohiro took funds for the military from money originally tagged for health care of the lower classes indicated how he intended to treat anyone not intimately connected with the Kurita military. What he called “the coddling of the common citizenry” was another of the subversive ideas that the Coordinator wanted to stamp out.

Under the banner of “Dragon Renewals,” the Coordinator took away the few services existing for the aid and relief of the lower classes. When he even attempted to close down the ComStar Hospices, officials turned him away with a reminder of what was within our power to do. Not surprisingly, those who wished to enter ComStar from the Draconis Combine rose astronomically during Hohiro’s reign.

Language became another point of contention. Coordinator Hohiro wished to make Japanese the realm’s only accepted language, with violations punishable by a public whipping. When news of this spread throughout the realm, it sparked off angry public demonstrations despite the tyranny of the times. The situation became so tense that Coordinator Hohiro was forced to sullenly withdraw the order making Japanese the only language in 2978.

Hohiro even managed to rile the ISF when he announced that his intention to review the Davarapala Accords because he had such grave doubts about almost all its provisions. Alarmed, the Director of the ISF managed to communicate his displeasure by having agents burn a large jitte on the lawn of the Coordinator’s favorite garden. Amused by this audacity, Hohiro let the ISF continue on under the Accords.

Hohiro was not amused by the fact that many merchants, bankers, and industrialists resented his efforts to tighten his hold on the Combine. When some of these came to him to protest his harsh policies, Hohiro seized their holdings and had them beheaded. This led to an unprecedented revolt known as the Strike of 2989, in which major Combine industries shut down in protest against Hohiro’s tyranny. Though the Coordinator tried everything from executions to attempting to run the factories with soldiers, he could not break the will of the wealthy bankers and industrialists. After four months of the strike threatened to put the Arm of the Dragon in jeopardy, Hohiro relented and began to ease up on the terms of his Dragon Renewal.

The New Millennium

It’s not enough to run here and there to strike at the enemy. Guile and cunning are required tools of a warrior, too.

—General Takashi Kurita, commander of the Imperial Palace Guards, 3002


As the year 3000 approached, Hohiro had been in power for 37 years, and the Draconis Combine showed the effects. Exhaustion, fear, and fatalism seemed to rob the Draconian people of their spirit. Among all the harsh Coordinators of the Combine, Hohiro had proved to be the most cruel.

To celebrate the passage of the old millennium and to usher in the new, Hohiro called for festivals and observances to take place across realm. When the incredulous people finally realized that the Coordinator was serious, they plunged into preparations like a starving men to a feast.

When the festivals commenced a full month before the new year, the reason for Hohiro’s unexpected benevolence became clear. Three years before, he had called his son Takashi back from the Davion front to command the Otomo, the elite Household Guard. Now, Hohiro announced that he had important plans for his son, which he would announce on New Year’s Day, 3000. It was clear that the festivals and celebrations were as much for Hohiro’s coming announcement as they were for the advent of the millennium. This cruel, harsh man had one soft spot in his heart, and it was for his son. He had lavished attention and gifts on the boy as a child, which had prompted the comment among the lower classes that Hohiro would spare one-tenth of 1 percent of the love for his son on the Combine, then the Unproductives would feast on caviar every day.

As a young officer in the 2nd Sword of Light ‘Mech regiment, Takashi had displayed considerable talent. His skill at piloting a BattleMaster (a particular favorite of the Kuritas, along with Dragons and Atlases) was exceeded only by his innate leadership ability. Even the already elite 2nd Sword of Light improved under his command. Takashi eventually rose to command the regiment’s heavy assault battalion. He apparently enjoyed the life of a battlefield commander, and there is some evidence to indicate that he was not pleased to be pulled from the regiment and brought home to Luthien.

It was, by all accounts, a truly spectacular New Year’s Eve party, with more fireworks exploded that night on Luthien than ever before in human history. It was said that telescopes on nearby Chatham actually noted a slight increase in the amount of light coming from the Luthien system due to the massive display.

As scheduled, Hohiro made his much-heralded announcement on January 19 3000. In a speech broadcast across the realm, he announced Takashi’s promotion to Brigadier General and that he would serve as Hohiro’s representative in the High Command of the Arm of the Dragon. He would also take command of the Otomo, the Palace Household Guard.

The sole purpose of the Otomo, is to protect the Coordinator and Unity Palace. It is slightly larger than a regiment in size and is made up of a mixture of ‘Mechs, armor, and infantry companies from Sword of Light regiments and other units from each of the five military districts. It is a high honor to be chosen to serve in the Otomo. It is also easy duty because it has been decades since any enemy attack on Luthien. To be assigned to the Household Guard is known as “getting the dream ticket.” Commanding the Otomo is an equally great honor and reserved as a heredity post for Kurita family members.

Despite the honor, Takashi Kurita was ambivalent about his new command. On the one hand, he liked being on Luthien because he was learning much about the politics of the Combine. There is no doubt that Takashi was looking forward to becoming Coordinator. But being confined to a post in the High Command and to the command of a regiment’s worth of toy soldiers in shiny uniforms meant that Takashi would unlikely feel the heat of battle again. That made him sad. Some would later say it also made him mad.

The Arm Of The Dragon Under Hohiro

While Hohiro’s policies were causing one of the few public demonstrations of mass disobedience in the history of the Draconis Combine, the Combine military was suffering under its own set of new policies.

Coordinator Hohiro had stripped the warlords of much of their power to carry out at least some actions under their own initiative. Now all actions had to pass through the High Command, which resulted in a military very sluggish about responding to new situations. Also taking its toll was the ultra-harsh treatment of the soldiers, which Hohiro seemed to feel was beneficial to warriors. The constant terror under which the average soldier now lived was making him dull, completely lacking in the fire that had formerly characterized the Kurita troops.

Both the Lyran Commonwealth and the Federated Suns took advantage of Hohiro’s egomania by making gains against the Arm of the Dragon. The Lyrans managed to take a few worlds back from the Federation of Skye section of the front, but it was the Federated Suns that gained most from the Combine’s military sluggishness. During Hohiro’s reign, House Davion succeeded in taking back seven of its worlds.

—From “Leadership Trends in the Draconis Combine During the Third War,” Internal ComStar Bulletin, 3012

Assassination Of Hohiro

Like all men, I must face death one day. The circumstances surrounding my death won’t matter to me, for I’ll be on my way to heaven. It is only those who I leave behind who will discuss the matter.

—Coordinator Hohiro Kurita, 3002


If anyone expected Hohiro’s new leniency to continue after the New Year’s celebration, they were sadly disappointed. Immediately after the festivities were over, the Coordinator reimposed all the harsh edicts. He even strengthened some of them to help “strip away the laziness the celebrations caused.” The festivities had reminded the people of a more joyful way of life, and many resented having it cut off again so quickly.

Late one night, Otomo Talon Sergeant Ingmar Sterenson slipped through a slight gap between two walls and entered the private gardens of the Coordinator. As one of Takashi Kurita’s trusted aides, Sterenson knew the location of the motion detectors and the heat sensors and exactly how to avoid them. He silently slipped past all the security devices.

Ironically, it was the most ancient security device of all that nearly stopped him. The floors of the Coordinator’s private quarters were of polished wood deliberately laid to squeak loudly whenever anyone walked. Sterenson had forgotten this, and when he stepped onto the raised floor of the Coordinator’s Bedchamber Building, the squeak immediately alerted the Otomo guards. Sterenson ran toward the private bedrooms of Hohiro. Twice he was attacked by guards wielding swords (lasers were not allowed in the private quarters of the Coordinator), but Ingmar Sterenson, an expert with the sword, deftly cut them down.

Talon Sergeant Ingmar Sterenson burst into the Coordinator’s bedchamber. Standing before the still fearless leader of the Draconis Combine, Sterenson raised the sword above his head and screamed, “Independence for the people of Rasalhague!” He then cleaved the skull of Hohiro Kurita, 29th Coordinator of the Draconis Combine.

The repercussions of Hohiro’s assassination were wide-reaching.

Talon Sergeant Ingmar Sterenson was apprehended and held by his fellow Otomo until they could locate Takashi Kurita. When Takashi arrived on the scene where his father lay dead, he had Sterenson taken out into the garden and shot. The Otomo then hung the assassin’s body upside down from a tree until the bones dropped to the ground.

Though many among the populace might have been glad to see the tyrannical Hohiro dead, they could not help wondering if Takashi would be worse. So they watched and waited to see what his son had in store for his people.

Takashi's "Benevolence"

I could never understand my father’s harsh attitude toward the people. You would not give constant whippings to a horse you must ride every day. The beast would either throw you off or die. That’s no way to treat a horse or a realm.

—Coordinator Takashi Kurita to Precentor Ambassador Isabel Sephran, 3005


A month after his father’s funeral and the official state mourning given the fallen Coordinator, Takashi Kurita surprised everyone by announcing sweeping reforms to the laws governing the public of the Draconis Combine. Acting the part of benevolent leader, he outlined plans that would significantly loosen the chains that had shackled Draconian society under his father’s administration.

While the public rejoiced over the proposed laws, which would repeal almost all of Takashi’s restrictions, critics within the government began to mutter. They considered Takashi’s proposal to be a ploy to prevent too close an investigation into how Sergeant Sterenson had managed to kill the Coordinator. Could the assassin have had help from Takashi?

When the ISF informed Coordinator Takashi of the rumors that he had played a part in his father’s death, Takashi became enraged. Mustering the Otomo, he had them round up and bring into the courtyard of Unity Palace anyone who had been spreading such sedition, along with many former enemies. Takashi then accused them of traitorously weakening the Draconis Combine with their malicious lies. There was only punishment for such behavior, he shouted. With that, the Otomo began to cut down the politicians with their laser rifles.

It shocked many nobles to see Takashi begin to hunt down those who might have escaped the courtyard massacre. They then watched as he also executed the families of anyone who questioned him. Among the common people, this purge was a sign that Takashi’s true nature was as violently repressive as his father’s.

Takashi Kurita was not his father, however. Once he was sure that the people of influence as well as the general public understood his ruthlessness, he formally passed the new laws loosening the restrictions on Kurita society.

Military Revival

While control of the government was passing from Hohiro to Takashi, the DCMS and the DCA were suffering a series of setbacks at the hands of the Federated Suns. In 3002, for example, Davion troops routed a numerically superior Kurita force, including a Sword of Light regiment, in the Third Battle for Harrow’s Sun. This gave the Federated Suns two major bulges into the Draconis Combine. One bulge was tipped by Harrow’s Sun and the other was tipped by Cylene II.

For his part, Takashi decided to revamp the military. He made it plain to the officers of each regiment that nobody’s job was safe. To strengthen the whole military, Takashi reshuffled the command structure of many regiments and showed that he would not hesitate to pull even the most illustrious commander from his post if necessary.

Every officer on and off the field now realized that he would be under close scrutiny, which created a sense of competition between unit commanders. The fear of imminent dismissal served to heighten the skills of each unit. It even promoted the use of innovative tactics, though this was not Takashi’s public aim. In this same period, Takashi also removed the front commanders and returned to the policy of each military district’s Warlord commanding the fight on his own portion of the front.

The Davion front concerned Takashi most. In 3007, he opened a modest offensive whose goal was to pinch off the two Davion bulges in the Kurita lines. He had attacks launched against Cylene, Mara, and Galatia III on one bulge while he attacked Harrow’s Sun, Benet III, and Crossing. Perhaps because of the new sense of competition among the Kurita units, all the attacks succeeded. Very well pleased, Coordinator Takashi began to plan more ambitious schemes.

Attitudes Towards His Rivals

I’m a firm believer that history, and perhaps Buddha himself, judges people not by their friends, but by their enemies.

—Coordinator Takashi Kurita, from a speech to the graduating class of the Sun Zhang MechWarriors Academy, 3014


In 3013, the Third Battle of Mallory’s World began when Coordinator Takashi ordered the Warlord of Dieron to seize that important agricultural planet. Using three ‘Mech regiments, including the Coordinator’s 2nd Sword of Light, and ten non-Mech lesser regiments, the invasion force hit the planet’s major continent under cover of night.

After three months of intensive combat, the continent was little more than a maze of burnt farm fields and destroyed cities. Though the Davion defenders finally managed to drive off the Kurita invaders, they paid a high price for success. While leading the defenders of Mallory’s World, Ian Davion, Prince of the Federated Suns, was killed. This left control of the Federated Suns to Hanse Davion, Ian’s younger brother.

Takashi was familiar with Hanse Davion, as he had read every intelligence report of the young man’s early career in the military. The desire to know his future enemy grew into an odd friendship of sorts. When Hanse’s father died, Takashi made an unprecedented, kind gesture of sending a note of condolence. Since then, each has taken a keen interest in the life and career of the other. Hanse Davion even sent a message expressing the wish that Takashi’s wife Jasmine would recover from a serious illness that befell her in 3019.

There is, however, no doubt that each considers the other an honorable and respected opponent. This does not deny that they are sworn enemies. The fact that he respects Hanse Davion pleases Takashi immensely, because it gives their struggles the aura of epic struggle prized in bushido. Takashi realized that Hanse Davion is probably the only person he can trust to always do his best.

Takashi Kurita’s opinion of the leader of the Lyran Commonwealth was not high at first. His opinion of her has risen in recent years. Though he was amused by her recent peace initiative, which he found a typically “womanly” gesture, he was impressed at how eloquently she stated her intention to defend her realm to the last warrior, if necessary.

Considering the similarity in political styles and outlook between Hanse Davion and Katrina Steiner, the only real reason Takashi holds Katrina Steiner in lesser esteem is due in large part to the Kurita attitude toward females.

The Halstead Station Affair

Of all my enemies, and there are many, I see the most honor in Prince Hanse Davion. His is a mind capable of seeing the advantages to be won from disaster.

—Coordinator Takashi Kurita in an overheard conversation with Subhash Indrahar, 3019


The Battle for Halstead Station was one of the first incidents in which Takashi Kurita faced Hanse Davion in a crisis. His exploits during the months of that battle went a long way to forming the Coordinator’s high opinion of the new leader of the Federated Suns. The history of this battle dates back to 3012, however, one year before Prince Ian’s death put Hanse Davion on the throne.

In that year, it came to the attention of the Davion military that House Kurita had converted huge sections of the quiet world of Halstead Station into an immense warehouse. Angered by the delays in getting spare parts from the Procurement Department to his frontline troops, Takashi had ordered construction of a depot closer to the Davion border to quickly supply his troops.

The Combine’s military architects began immediately to excavate huge pits in the planet’s surface, where the immense underground warehouses would be built. They would be constructed of concrete, steel, and armor to withstand the heaviest barrage from artillery and bombs. Defending these depots would be a circle of hardened positions bristling with guns to ward off any enemy attack from land or air.

Though the Combine military attempted to keep construction of the supply center top-secret, word of the project somehow leaked its way to Prince tan Davion. Davion realized the danger to his forces should the Kurita military have quick access to replacement parts and supplies. The Prince considered it such a high-priority matter that he began personally to design the assault on the planet and the construction site.

By late 3013, Ian Davion’s plans were almost complete, and he had marshaled almost all his forces for the attack. Just as he was about to brief his generals on his plans, he received the news that House Kurita had attacked Mallory’s World. Without hesitation, Prince Ian left to direct the defense of that planet. When he later died on Mallory’s World, the plans for the attack on Halstead Station almost died with him.

Though the Davion generals counseled the new Prince to postpone or even cancel the attack on Halstead, Hanse surprised them all by deciding to continue with the invasion as planned.

What the generals did not know was that Hanse Davion had just received important news from Halstead Station that Kurita construction crews had recently stumbled upon the ruins of a large complex of buildings while excavating on the planet. It did not take the Kuritans long to realize that they had dug up the remains of a large university. The biggest find occurred when an earth-scooper broke its bucket when it hit a room-sized vault.

It had taken weeks to bring the vault up to the surface, and would take weeks longer to safely open it. Hanse Davion already had an inkling of what might be in the vault, however. If he was right, the cache might prove far more important than Lord Kurita’s new warehouses.

January 4, 3014 found Prince Hanse Davion at the lead of three ‘Mech regiments. Based on a vague idea of what his brother had intended for the attack on the planet, he had improvised his own plan. His strategy hinged on a lightning drop and then a series of attacks aimed at destroying the construction on the warehouses, as well as the heavy machinery used to build them. While this was going on, Hanse Davion would lead the First Guards to find the mysterious vault. At prearranged points, the DropShips would land, pick up the entire raiding force, then leave again.

Takashi Kurita also realized what might be in the mysterious vault in the ruins of the university. When he heard that they could not remove the vault until it was opened and the contents preserved, the Coordinator sent reinforcements to the planet. On the day of the Davion raid, an additional ‘Mech regiment and a large number of Kurita AeroSpace Fighters had arrived to bolster the ‘Mech regiment and other lesser regiments already on the planet. The drop and raid went as planned for the Davion attackers. Hanse Davion and his units, surprised by the increased numbers of Kurita ‘Mechs, managed nevertheless to reach the vault. Opening the vault with a series of punches, the Davion ‘Mechs reached inside.

The Prince’s suspicions had been correct. What the huge hands of the ‘Mechs found inside the vault were hundreds of priceless books.

There was no time to carefully pack up the books, and so the Davion ‘Mechs picked up handfuls and stuffed them into large sacks. With sacks bulging, the ‘Mechs then burned the remaining volumes, though this deeply pained Hanse. Now the ‘Mechs of the Federated Suns made their way to the landing points for their DropShips.

Those ships were not there, however. In the space above Halstead Station, the Davion DropShips were in a running battle with Kurita fighters, most of which the Davion naval officers had not been expecting. Landing to pick up the Prince and his ‘Mech regiment was impossible. Survival was now the name of the game for the Davion DropShips.

So started a cat-and-mouse game played both on the ground and in the air above the planet. Five times, the Davion DropShips attempted to rendezvous with the Prince and his ‘Mechs. Each time, either the Kurita ground forces or their AeroSpace Fighters sniffed out the plan and thwarted it.

When Coordinator Takashi heard that his forces had Prince Davion pinned on Halstead station, he immediately went in with the 2nd Sword of Light to lead the hunt.

When reinforcements from the Federated Suns, including desperately needed AeroSpace Fighters, finally managed to make their way down to the planet’s surface, much had occurred between the two sides. Prince Davion had, on three separate occasions, placed his own life in peril to protect his troops. On one occasion, his command battalion held a bridge on the enemy’s side of a large river, exposing themselves to enemy fire, while the stragglers of a battered Davion company made their way across the river.

As the Davion DropShips, escorted by Davion AeroSpace Fighters, left Halstead Station, Coordinator Takashi Kurita could not prevent a grim smile of admiration from breaking over his grimy face.

The bags of books, which the ‘Mechs of the Federated Suns had protected so diligently during the fighting, did prove far more important than Davion’s success in destroying the Kurita storage base. The books were priceless antiques that the university had collected and protected in the vault. Though many were volumes on literature, economics, and psychology, most exciting to Hanse Davion were those dealing with technical matters such as water purification, myomer production, and computer design.

The Halstead Collection, as these books came to be known, are now housed in a special library whose atmosphere is carefully controlled to preserve the books. These volumes became the foundation for the curriculum at the New Avalon Institute of Science, where the books are housed today.

Attitude Towards Mercenaries

Under the leadership of Takashi Kurita, the Draconis Combine has recently mellowed its attitude toward Mercenaries. No longer are units-for-hire treated as “mercenary scum,” which was the infamous Jinjiro’s term for them. Though this does not mean that the Kurita military gives merc units any special treatment, it does mean that House Kurita is no longer willing to risk a unit’s ire by openly cheating them. Instead, Kurita prefers to use the more subtle “Company Store” scam to entangle mercenary units.

The recruiting and supervision of mercenaries is handled by the Professional Soldiery Liaison (PSL), which is under direct control of the DCMS High Command. Coordinator Takashi Kurita also takes an active interest in mercenary recruitment, and so often sets down the bargaining terms for the PSL negotiators. In the case of large or prestigious units such as Wolf’s Dragoons, he sometimes involves himself in the contact with the unit’s leader.

Takashi Kurita apparently views the mercenary life with some envy. On at least one occasion, he, along with an absolute minimum of Otomo, accompanied Jaime Wolf on a raid into Davion space. It was ostensibly to observe the Dragoon’s tactics, but reports have it that Takashi’s real reason was a simple desire to taste battlefield life as a MechWarrior once more.

Recent Developments

Look, we may have pushed him back a bit in recent years, but don’t you ever assume we’ve weakened him. He is the dragon on which his realm is based; scales for skin, flame for breath, leathery wings to fly, and all the more dangerous coiled like we have him now.

—Prince Davion to the Ambassador from the Lyran Commonwealth, 3025


With Hanse Davion’s accession, a new chapter of the war began to unfold. As one of his personal goals, Hanse vowed to recover all the worlds lost to Minoru Kurita in the First Succession War. Though it is an ambitious program, the Prince seems to have the patience necessary to prepare thoroughly and to see it through.

His first offensive moves were actually against the Capellan Federation, with some forces left on the Kurita border to conduct raids that would keep Takashi’s forces off-balance.

Takashi took the offensive by attacking the Davion world of Mara in 3015, using a combined Dieron and Benjamin task force. The Warlord of Dieron had control over the three ‘Mech regiments composed of two Dieron Regulars and one Benjamin Regulars. They attacked in three different sites around the main continent of Mara.

The invasion was a textbook example of Takashi’s attempt to improve the performance of his troops by encouraging competition between their commanding officers. The Dieron Warlord had many years of experience, and his district was the only one that faced both the Federated Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth. The Warlord of the Benjamin District, Ukita Yoriyoshi, was the new and rising star of the DCMS. He favored speed and innovation over the Dieron Warlord’s more cautious style. Theirs was to prove an abrasive relationship.

Under the Dieron Warlord’s leadership, much of the Kurita force managed to get itself pushed onto a narrowing peninsula. Hearing of this at another dropsite, Warlord Yoriyoshi took a battalion of his 3rd Benjamin Regulars, loaded them onto their DropShips during a battle, and took off. Landing behind the enemy forces, his ‘Mechs dismounted fast enough to attack the Davion forces from behind. Before the Davion troops could get organized, Yoriyoshi had fought his way to the besieged Dieron Warlord, then began pushing the split Davion forces apart.

When the Kuritans had pushed the Davion forces off the planet, the Dieron Warlord attempted to have Yoriyoshi courtmartialed for disobeying a plan drawn up by the Coordinator himself. Takashi, who had been following the battle closely, stepped in and instead decorated Yoriyoshi for showing such initiative.

The Coordinator was far less pleased with events on the Steiner front, which had become almost completely stagnant. Only the fight for the heavily industrialized world of Sevren showed any real possibilities.

To try and shake things up, Takashi designed and executed a plan to seize the Commonwealth world of Laurent in 3016. Because of the planet’s positions, the Draconis Combine could effectively cut off both Tamar and Sevren from the rest of the Commonwealth by getting control of Laurent.

Using three regiments of the Rasalhague Regulars, their first action was a ruse to give the appearance that the Kuritans were reinforcing their forces on Sevren by actually landing those ‘Mech units on the planet. Though they did participate in the fighting on Sevren, the three regiments tended to stick close to the spaceport and their DropShips. The instant the Commonwealth reacted to the presence of the three new Kurita regiments on the planet by sending in their own reinforcements, the Rasalhague units loaded onto their DropShips and moved out of the Sevren system to Laurent.

Those three Kurita ‘Mech regiments came very close to taking Laurent. If it had not been for the strong defense put up by the planet’s militia and the Beta Battalion of the 8th Donegal Guards, the planet would have fallen long before the arrival of reinforcements from Tamar and Sevren.

The attempt to take Laurent did not succeed, but it did create considerable action along the Steiner border. The reactions of the LCAF gave the Arm of the Dragon plenty of opportunities to make raids against Commonwealth planets.

When Enemies Unite

When Takashi Kurita flatly refused to even consider the Archon Katrina Steiner’s cease-fire proposals in 3.020, he did not dream that any of the other realms would take her seriously. Hanse Davion did, however, and quietly entered into a series of intense discussions aimed at creating an alliance between the Federated Suns, the largest and most powerful of realms, and the Lyran Commonwealth, the richest.

Whether it was male chauvinism that made Takashi reject the Archon’s offer or the code of bushido, which tends to spurn negotiated settlements, Lord Kurita soon learned to regret his lack of civility. When he heard that the two realms had signed a peace and alliance treaty, he went nearly apoplectic with rage, one of the few times anyone had ever seen Takashi so out of control.

The Coordinator immediately sent emissaries to the Capellan Confederation and to the Free Worlds League. His hope was to forge his own alliance to face off with the Lyran-Suns. This goal has not yet come to pass because of the difficulty inherent in uniting three realms that are basically distrustful of one another. They have managed to coordinate some military efforts, however. Only time will tell if the three can overcome their wariness enough to jointly combat the ever-stronger bond between the Commonwealth and the Federated Suns.

The Continuing Alliance

The alliance between the Lyran Commonwealth and the Federated Suns has had a major impact on the fighting abilities of these two Houses. The Federated Suns launched a major offensive in 3022 that resulted in the capture of the important worlds of Tancredi II, Galatia, Rome, and several others. They also managed to seize Galtor III, a major source of Star League materials. These successes became even sweeter with the return of the elite Eridani Light Horse, which had been resting and recouping from losses of a decade earlier.

On the Steiner front, Tamar and Sevren, two planets that had been contested for decades, have now fallen to the Lyrans. The abilities of the LCAF have continued to improve, and the Steiners have further bolstered their military by employing mercenary units such as Hansen’s Roughriders.

If House Kurita is known for anything, it is for their ability to respond fiercely and passionately when pressured or cornered militarily. If Takashi can hold onto his reign, his lenient policies plus the ability to skillfully manipulate his officers should combine with traditional Kurita fervor to sorely test anything the Steiner-Davion alliance can throw at him.

—From "An Unofficial Look at the Kurita-Steiner-Davion Fronts," Precentor Stils Weinstein, Internal Bulletin, ComStar Publications, 3025

Internal Squabbles

Yes, there have been attempts on my life, but most leaders have to expect such things. For who can rule perfectly? With just a few words, I might instantly turn 20 million loyal subjects into enemies bent on seeing me dead. One rules as best he can, but learns to suspect every shadow, every blind corner.

—Archon Katrina Steiner in a Holo-interview, Tamar Broadcasting Company, 3024


There have been nine attempts on the life of Takashi Kurita during his reign as Coordinator of the Draconis Combine. The first came during his first year, when a distant relative of a man executed during the courtyard purge rushed up with a knife raised to strike. Takashi, whose padded jersey absorbed the knife thrust, also managed to break his assailant’s neck. He ordered that the assassin’s body be hung from the main gate of the Imperial Palace, along with that of every member of the Otomo group charged with guarding him that day.

The last three attempts have been sophisticated in their operation and suggest a single source. The first occurred in 3021 when a bomb detonated in Takashi’s DropShip. The Coordinator managed to escape in an AeroSpace Fighter.

The next attempt came in 3023 when a courtesan pricked Takashi’s finger with a poison-tipped needle hidden on her person. Though Takashi survived, he was deathly ill for two weeks and can no longer tolerate milk products because of reaction to the poison.

The third and latest attack came just five months ago. While Takashi was sparring in his BattleMaster, a microchip popped up from where it had been implanted in the ‘Mech’s coordination and guidance panel. It immediately began to send spurious signals into the Security Procedures panel. The controls of Takashi’s ‘Mech would no longer respond to his touch. Instead, the computer informed him that he was an intruder and had five minutes to vacate or else his ‘Mech would self-destruct. The microchip had also latched the hatch to the BattleMaster, trapping Takashi. He barely managed to escape by desperately yanking every computer board in his display, which shorted out the rogue system.

The sophistication of these attempts points to an assassin who not only has knowledge of technology but of Takashi Kurita himself. Though the ISF suspects Marcus Kurita, cousin to Takashi, they have no real evidence. Marcus had been removed as Warlord of the Rasalhague Military District in 3019 when Takashi decided that his cousin was becoming too popular among both the people and the troops in the district. The Coordinator therefore “promoted” him to Chief of the Strategies within the DCMS High Command. Marcus was not particularly pleased with being removed so summarily from his original, important post.

[Cryogenius333]

Never liked the Combine. I cant imagine the other houses are much better, but House Kuritas fanatical militarism just makes them...well...unlikeable.

[walrus of mass destruction]

ah, pre-Clan Battletech. Best Era.

[RARESTKARMA]

self destruct protocols are so sooo stupid when all that is needed is to shut out the reactor imagine an infiltrator gets into your mech bay all he needs to do to destroy everything is start up a mech and kaboom its all just a very stupid idea

[Culdraca]

eventually

[Culdraca]

Well the last Dictator in africa died of old age. He was 95, so yeah he got what he deserved lol

[RARESTKARMA]

All this shows is a dictator inevitably gets their up n comings :)