The Age of War marks the first conflicts of the fledgling realms of the Great Houses, the major periphery realms, and the Terran Hegemony, starting off with the First Andurian War between the Free Worlds League and the Capellan Confederation. Border skirmishes abound prompting the signing of the Ares Conventions in 2412 in an attempt to curtail the increasingly uncontrollable hostilities.
This period is particularly appealing as a game setting because of one missing element: the Battlemech. "Mackie" will not be unveiled by the Terran Hegemony until 2439, and the technology will not begin to spread until 2455. In 2459, the Battlemech will see combat use and cement its place as the lord of the battlefield. Additionally, heavy shuttles will remain the primary interplanetary transport until the invention of the dropship in 2496.
The formation of the Star League in 2571 led almost immediately into the Reunification War. The attempt to force the periphery states into the League lasted from 2577 to 2597; twenty long years. This fighting would impact the history of those realms for the next several hundred years.
Characters wishing to play a guerilla campaign against insurmountable odds will be hard pressed to find a better time period than this. The normally "good guy" Star League committed some henious acts in the attempt to subdue the peoples of the periphery.
This is the time that everyone talks about when they speak of the "golden age." Technology, medicine and the arts all flourished as trade between all parts of human space opened up to unprecedented levels. The most high-tech items of Battletech are available durign this period, and a game master could introduce fantastic "toys" that would have been lost to humanity in chaos of the Succession Wars.
This is also the time of the Martial Olympiads, the massive Star League Defense Force wargames that were used to constantly hone their warfighting skills. The Hidden War of honor duels between the Ronin of House Kurita and the SLDF Gunslingers claimed many lives on both sides. While overt hostilities may have ceased, covert actions were stepped up in response.
The death of the First Lord in 2751, a boy placed on his throne, and the start of the Border Wars in 2760 were the beginning of the end for the Star League. The Amaris Coup in 2766 touched off thirteen years of fighting as the SLDF fought its way from the periphery to Terra, the cradle of humanity. In 2784, General Alexander Kerensky and 75% of the SLDF departed known space, leaving the way open for the Succession Wars.
Whether watching in horror as friendly garrisons are replaced with Rim Worlds troops prior to the coup, fighting against those troops afterwards, or returning to dislodge those troops and finding the absolute ruin they made of all things good, a campaign set in this time is going to be a dark one indeed.
Orbital Bombardment. Nuclear Weapons. Destroying jumpships, factories, and killing scientists. The First Succession War was the most brutal of the Succession Wars and did the most to send humanity hurtling backwards technologically. This time combines the best of both worlds: good ol' fighting Houses and Star League technology.
Compared to the First and the Third, the Second Succession War has very little to recommend it. It starts up just because the Houses are ready to rumble again and peters out in a series of failed peace talks.
The Third Succession War sets the stage for one of the favorite Battletech periods. The Houses end up roughly split into two factions: Steiner and Davion on one side and Kurita, Liao and Marik on the other. Everything is set at Level 1 technology, jumpships are rare, a single lance of mechs can hold a planet, a battle will stop to allow folks to salvage what they can, fusion engines are rare, you DON'T blow up an HPG, and warships are unheard of. It's a great time for the feudal age of Battletech.
The Marik Civil War is an interesting footnote. The divisions in loyalty that it caused remained a problem for years afterwards, impairing the FWL military and political scene. Jaime Wolf also lost his brother in this conflict. Players in the Wolf's Dragoons will have plenty of action and adventure leading up to a rightous finale.
In my personal favorite wedding toast of all time, Hanse Davion takes half of the Capellan Confederation and hands it to his wife as a gift. More planets changed hands during this war than any other Succession War. Everyone wants to play as a Davion.
This is where things start to get corporate. Technology is starting to come back and the Houses are fielding entire mech armies again as a result. Mechwarriors are slowly becoming less of an elite class of warriors and more like a type of soldier (note the distinction).
The Duchy of Andurian, allied with the Magistracy of Canopus, seceded from the Free Worlds League and attacked the "weakened" Capellan Confederation. In a remarkable display of the will to survive, the Capellans handidly defeat the allied forces, largely through the use of the Warrior Houses.
This is a good setting for groups that want to try periphery, Marik or Liao characters. I know my group doesn't use them often, and it makes for a nice twist.
In a political maneauver, the Rasalhague District is granted independance (however short lived it might be). However, some samurai disagree and go to war against the newly created Free Rasalhague Republic almost immediately. This short but fierce fight was the birth of the FRR, just like the Clan Wars were its death.
Character ideas include indignant samurai, loyalist Kurita forces, and the beleagured Rasalhague soldiers.
The Federated Commonwealth attack against the Draconis Combine was stalled by several factors, including the Rasalhague buffer zone and the introduction of Star League mechs into the DCMS, courtesy of Comstar.
This is fun for the "shocK" effect of thte Fedcom troops running into
The Clan Invasion was the big "update" and revitilization of the Battletech universe. It has enough of the old cast and the new cast to make it one of the best known periods here. Playing the desperate odds of the Inner Sphere or the Clans in their glory is always a fun little romp.
This campaign loses some of its charm and suspense after the first five times it's played. A GM is challenged to keep the "appearance" of the Clans exciting.
The Free Worlds League and the Capellan Confederation used the death of Joshua Marik as an excuse to reconquor many of the planets lost during the Forth Succession War. However, the Capellans over extended themselves and without the support of the League, were forced to leave several planets in a state of limbo. Players stranded in the Chaos March are faced with many challenges and no "cavalry to the rescue."
The Refusal War between Clan Jade Falcon and Clan Wolf is a very defining time for the clans, eventually leading to Clans Wolf and Wolf-in-Exile, as well as practically incapacitating the two strongest clans in the Inner Sphere.
Next to the Clan Invasion, this is one of the best times to play as Clans Wolf or Jade Falcon. Kell Hound fans will also appreciate this setting.
During this time, several low intensity conflicts were taking place with Star League "peacekeepers." Sometimes this was a legitimate attempt to keep the peace, as in the use of DCMS to control the Chaos March. The most notable abuse was the use of Capellan "peacekeepers" to begin the violent and bloody reunification of the St. Ives Compact and the Capellan Confederation.
Serving in an SLDF peacekeeping force mirrors the current UN missions fairly well. The players are foreign troops, largely not wanted, and constantly getting shot at by an enemy they can't just stand up and fight. Charming.
The fighting to annihilate the Smoke Jaguar clan was savage and complete. It made use of people from every part of the Inner Sphere, every military profession, and every philosophical bent. A great deal of variety can come into play by having characters be part of one of the task forces involved.
Fratricide. Chemical Warfare. Not a pretty setting, but a fairly intense one.
Katherine or Victor. The Fedcom Civil War tore apart the largest realm in the Inner Sphere and largely destroyed the new Star League. With forces fighting from one end of the Federated Commonwealth to the other, and mercenaries in between, navigating the military and political waters presents several challenges to players.
Not much has been written on the bloody jihad that was launched by the Word of Blake against every major planet in the Inner Sphere. The hints of nuclear weapons and concentration camps paint a picture of a very savage time. Since so little is written about it, a game master is given a great deal of freedom to write events as he sees them.
Most of this stuff is common knowledge, and greater details can be found on any Battletech timeline. Hopefully reading through this list sparked an idea or two of something you could do before you dust off the old "Clan Invasion" campaign again.
Until next time, feedback and comments are welcome!