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GhostStalker
Mar 26, 2010

Guys, find a woman who looks at you the way GhostStalker looks at every bald, obese, single 58 year old accountant from Tulsa who managed to win $4,000 by not wagering on a Final Jeopardy triple stumper.

Gwaihir posted:

Comstar wasn't the one trying to kill Carlos, the Comguard forces on the planet with him ended up joining up after watching the Capellans roast the gently caress out of their HPG via hovering dropship.

Yeah, that was a fun set of missions to watch. The Legendary Four Beasts of the Cardinal Directions, plus the Brothers of the Peach Garden Oath, and LU MOTHERFUCKING BU showing up and roasting the C* HPG facilities, then Morgan Kell/Melissa Steiner as the Red Corsair Pirates and the Steel Vipes as Star Colonel Dusk and Bondsman Caesar Steiner showing up to rescue him and his Crusaders and the remaining ComGuard personnel, setting up the formation of the New Star League in the process.

Carlos seems like good people, and I can only hope he's relatively successful. Duncan didn't seem like that poor of a ruler either, but I guess getting sucker punched by the Cappies will bring down your legacy even if you did get the FWL into the ground floor of the New Star League, avoided a war with the Clanners in the Snow Raven/Sea Fox/Ghost Bear brotherhood trio currently burning down Andurien by fighting a token trial, and get the Helm cache distributed to the rest of the Inner Sphere, plus some of the mechs there that weren't stolen by the Red Corsairs getting there first or C* trying to wreck it under the guise of a Red Corsair pirate attack.

Oh well, I'm not sure who to root for here, since the blurb on the Cappies make Sun Wu look to be a pretty decent guy so far not prone to the madness of his mom and grandpa.

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Zaodai
May 23, 2009

Death before dishonor?
Your terms are accepted.


Sun Wu is just trying to do the best he can picking up the mess in a somewhat mismanaged house and still dealing with the rear end in a top hat nobles who don't like things changing which are present in EVERY House in the IS. Even if the stuff like always paying ransom for even the lowliest of troops and ransoming enemies rather than going MAXIMUM HITLER turns out to be motivated by wanting to improve the reputation of the CapCon or Sun Wu's own reputation with the people, it doesn't make it less of a nice thing to do.

I don't think it's outside the realm of possibility he's not evil/insane, and he genuinely means to do good by people. President Amaris mostly fills the role of "crazy rear end in a top hat with good PR" as it is. It's not like trying to be a good guy in Battletech won't come without its share of conflicts and challenges even without considering the CapCon's past. Especially when Sun Wu tries to convince the nobles that no, you can't just whip a POW to death because you're bored.

PoptartsNinja
May 9, 2008

He is still almost definitely not a spy


Soiled Meat
Lyran Alliance
Melissa Steiner and Clovis Lestrade continue to rule in the former Republic of Skye (now called ‘Kerenskye’ (A) to honor their relationship with the three Clans of Task Force Serpent). Clans Steel Viper, Cloud Cobra, and Star Adder now dub themselves the Star League Defense Force. Tensions between Kerenskye and its neighbors are mounting as the SLDF eyes the worlds of the former Terran Hegemony covetously. Thanks to the quick thinking of the Star Adders, the genetic legacies of all three Clans have been preserved intact and new generations of Trueborns are being produced in the Inner Sphere—under Melissa Steiner’s watchful eye. The Lyran Commonwealth is still the dominant power in the region, with economic and defensive alliances with Kerenskye. Frederick Steiner still rules the Commonwealth, but pressure to name a successor and step down is mounting. He continues to play his successors against one another while he tries to decide whether Adam, Lisa, Robert, Sarah or Reinhardt Steiner is best fit to replace him.

CourValant
Feb 25, 2016

Do You Remember Love?

PoptartsNinja posted:

(now called ‘Kerenskye’ (A) to honor their relationship with the three Clans of Task Force Serpent)

Whoever called 'Clan-A-Boo' nailed it.

Defiance Industries
Jul 22, 2010

A five-star manufacturer


PoptartsNinja posted:

Lyran Alliance
He continues to play his successors against one another while he tries to decide whether Adam, Lisa, Robert, Sarah or Reinhardt Steiner is best fit to replace him.

Duh

GhostStalker
Mar 26, 2010

Guys, find a woman who looks at you the way GhostStalker looks at every bald, obese, single 58 year old accountant from Tulsa who managed to win $4,000 by not wagering on a Final Jeopardy triple stumper.

CourValant posted:

Whoever called 'Clan-A-Boo' nailed it.

Welp, that rename was unexpected, but fitting I guess. Good to see that Fred is ok with his niece running an independent part of his de jure realm, but that might just be the neo-SLDF/Task Force Serpent backing her.

Also nice to see that most of the factions post timeskip seem relatively sane from what the blurbs make them out to be, but then again, that's never stopped people from getting into a war ever.

GhostStalker fucked around with this message at 01:06 on Jun 7, 2018

mercenarynuker
Sep 10, 2008

Rorahusky posted:

Makes me wonder how the Demon Hawks are doing as a whole, especially after Andurian. For that matter, I wonder what's up with the mercenary scene in general. I imagine that Comstar continuing to run the mercenary board is unlikely, since Comstar outright joined the new Star League, and the rest of the nations probably wouldn't be keen on relying on a hiring service run by a rival nation. Sounds like a good way to get all your contracts cancelled should a fight ever break out between you and the Star League.

See, I really like this post because it contains something I never would have given a lot of thought to when I'm moving grand coalitions and changing heirarchies across an entire sector of the galaxy. PTN, how do you let little things like this affect your storytelling, fluff, background details, etc when it comes to mapping out the plot outlines? Or do you just kind of disregard it? Not necessarily out of malice or anything, but I can see how that could have knock-on effects of "well poo poo, now THIS FACTION needs to consider it" and bloat the story/planning

PoptartsNinja
May 9, 2008

He is still almost definitely not a spy


Soiled Meat
Well, the situation is no worse than before. The primary hiring hall of Galatea is deep in Skye, so the Lyrans pretty much always had the ability to interdict mercenary employers just by denying them passage.

The Capellans already aren't hiring mercenaries, which just leaves the Federated Suns and Draconis Combine who are now reinforcing one another and have less need for mercenaries in general since one of their biggest dangers (one another) is now a theoretically peaceful border. That means mercenary work in general will probably take a bit of a downturn, but the number of FWL mercenaries operating in the Lyran Alliance will likely increase.

ComStar's MRB would most likely switch to prioritizing corporate contracts, but there's no way they'd give up such easy money. They'd continue to claim impartiality in this case, they have no real vested interest in the second Star League succeeding.

Mukaikubo
Mar 14, 2006

"You treat her like a lady... and she'll always bring you home."
I am 100% on Team Kerenskye until further notice. The snake clans/SLDF, in Lyran space? Yes plz

Runa
Feb 13, 2011

I think we're gonna enjoy these Clanaboos

Defiance Industries
Jul 22, 2010

A five-star manufacturer


GhostStalker posted:

Good to see that Fred is ok with his niece running an independent part of his de jure realm, but that might just be the neo-SLDF/Task Force Serpent backing her.

You could call it a shift from unitary government to federalism, if you were so inclined.

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

Xarbala posted:

I think we're gonna enjoy these Clanaboos

Like all converts, I expect them to be even more ardent than the original, demanding ideological purity and competing with one another over who is the truest scotsman.

Also I expect the actual clanners to be initially amused, then confused, and then furious about it. (Clanners always end up furious about everything, but in this case, being insulted by the gaijin's cultural appropriation is a natural conclusion anyway).

Clan society in its purest original form was doomed as soon as it came into contact with the IS. But clan society in the hands of its IS fanboys can become more pure than it ever was in the outer rim.

Tran
Feb 17, 2011

It's a pleasure to meet all of you. Especially in such a fine settin' as this. Just need us some music an' a brawl an' we'll be set.

Leperflesh posted:

Like all converts, I expect them to be even more ardent than the original, demanding ideological purity and competing with one another over who is the truest scotsman.

As a reminder, the snake clans have been genuinely enthusiastic about embracing giant robot melee duels. So the ideological purity test is always going to be a little muddled.

Strobe
Jun 30, 2014
GW BRAINWORMS CREW
I am super-pumped for even the distant possibility of a return to the First Hidden War where Kerenskyean and Kuritan MechWarriors routinely challenge each other to duels in single combat.

MechWarrior Top Gun is all kinds of my poo poo.

CourValant
Feb 25, 2016

Do You Remember Love?

Strobe posted:

I am super-pumped for even the distant possibility of a return to the First Hidden War where Kerenskyean and Kuritan MechWarriors routinely challenge each other to duels in single combat.

MechWarrior Top Gun is all kinds of my poo poo.

I'm assuming you mean First Hidden War post time skip, as opposed to the cannon First Hidden War?

Kerenskyean and Kuritan Top Gun would be awesome; The Gunslinger Program and TRO is probably my most favorite bit of fluff in BT.

Strobe
Jun 30, 2014
GW BRAINWORMS CREW

CourValant posted:

I'm assuming you mean First Hidden War post time skip, as opposed to the cannon First Hidden War?

Kerenskyean and Kuritan Top Gun would be awesome; The Gunslinger Program and TRO is probably my most favorite bit of fluff in BT.

Yes and yes.

One might even say :bisonyes:

GhostStalker
Mar 26, 2010

Guys, find a woman who looks at you the way GhostStalker looks at every bald, obese, single 58 year old accountant from Tulsa who managed to win $4,000 by not wagering on a Final Jeopardy triple stumper.

Defiance Industries posted:

You could call it a shift from unitary government to federalism, if you were so inclined.

Makes sense. Isn't the Lyran Commonwealth supposed to be a ConMon on paper, with the Archon's actions technically needing to be ratified by the Estates General, but they're pretty much a rubber stamp at this point?

Still, some actual beginnings of Federalism, and not the fiction of the one in the FedSuns, is a breath of somewhat fresh air, though we'll see how it actually plays out soon.

CourValant
Feb 25, 2016

Do You Remember Love?

Strobe posted:

One might even say :bisonyes:

If I had to 'Gunsling', I'd pack two RAC/5s, two Snub Nose PPCs, and 5 JJs into the hottest 75T IS Tech Omni I can find.

It'll be difficult to imagine the Kerenskyean Snake SLDF'ers taking anything other than a Timber Wolf MK. 'Whatever I WIN' though.

Preechr
May 19, 2009

Proud member of the Pony-Brony Alliance for Obama as President
I forgot, was it real Melissa Steiner who married Clovis or was it Jeana Clay?

Defiance Industries
Jul 22, 2010

A five-star manufacturer


GhostStalker posted:

Makes sense. Isn't the Lyran Commonwealth supposed to be a ConMon on paper, with the Archon's actions technically needing to be ratified by the Estates General, but they're pretty much a rubber stamp at this point?

The Lyran Commonwealth IS a constitutional monarchy, just with a leader who has much wider powers than we're used to from contemporary governments of the time. The Articles of Acceptance draw up what the scope and restrictions are to the Archon's powers, noting fundamental rights of the citizens and guaranteeing autonomy to member worlds on some level. It also sets up the Estates General and delegates powers to them like ratifying new Archons when they take office. I wouldn't say their powers have been whittled away, though; the Estates General's most prominent power, control of the Lyran budget, isn't in the Articles but is a power they accumulated through tradition (a monarch's best friend, especially when House Steiner having exclusive dibs on the Archonship is just a tradition and not law). Legally speaking, the Archon's actions don't need to be ratified by the Estates General, but since the Archon's funding choices are "Ask the Estates General" or "Pay for it out of my own pocket" the E-G has acquired a fairly strong check on the Archon's power. Doesn't always work, but Constitutional Monarchies are often janky things.

quote:

Still, some actual beginnings of Federalism, and not the fiction of the one in the FedSuns, is a breath of somewhat fresh air, though we'll see how it actually plays out soon.

The FWL is pretty Federalist.

Defiance Industries fucked around with this message at 01:40 on Jun 7, 2018

GhostStalker
Mar 26, 2010

Guys, find a woman who looks at you the way GhostStalker looks at every bald, obese, single 58 year old accountant from Tulsa who managed to win $4,000 by not wagering on a Final Jeopardy triple stumper.

Preechr posted:

I forgot, was it real Melissa Steiner who married Clovis or was it Jeana Clay?

Actual Melissa Steiner, I think. We were originally led to believe it was Clay, but I think she was the one hanging out with Morgan Kell as the Red Corsair and had those adventures with Duncan, IIRC. I forget if it was her or actual Melissa that went to save Carlos Marik from the Capellan Society Legendary Beasts of the Cardinal Directions sentai squad and the Brothers of the Peach Garden Oath alongside Morgan Kell, Star Colonel Dusk, and Bondsman Caesar Steiner.

Defiance Industries posted:

The Lyran Commonwealth IS a constitutional monarchy, just with a leader who has much wider powers than we're used to from contemporary governments of the time. The Articles of Acceptance draw up what the scope and restrictions are to the Archon's powers, noting fundamental rights of the citizens and guaranteeing autonomy to member worlds on some level. It also sets up the Estates General and delegates powers to them like ratifying new Archons when they take office. I wouldn't say their powers have been whittled away, though; the Estates General's most prominent power, control of the Lyran budget, isn't in the Articles but is a power they accumulated through tradition (a monarch's best friend, especially when House Steiner having exclusive dibs on the Archonship is just a tradition and not law). Legally speaking, the Archon's actions don't need to be ratified by the Estates General, but since the Archon's funding choices are "Ask the Estates General" or "Pay for it out of my own pocket" the E-G has acquired a fairly strong check on the Archon's power. Doesn't always work, but Constitutional Monarchies are often janky things.

Fair enough, you would know better than me, having actually grown up playing the game and read the sourcebooks and having the LyrCom as your favored faction instead of me just picking up bits and pieces from this thread and Sarna and other boards and general geek osmosis. Tradition and the power of the purse do count for a helluva lot in a neo-feudal systems of the government that BT tends to favor.

quote:

The FWL is pretty Federalist.

True, they also seem to have the only Parliament worthy of the name here, even if the Captain-General has all these Emergency Powers he can apparently use to force his will through, if what I picked up from this thread and others is correct.

Still, doesn't the FWL's federal system lead to the kind of factionalism, infighting, rivalries, backstabbing, and outright civil war when one part goes all NO gently caress YOU! :Marik: to all the others, which the FWL is kinda memetically infamous for, or is it actually not that bad in the actual setting?

Strobe
Jun 30, 2014
GW BRAINWORMS CREW
It's not as bad as most memes make it out to be, but it's definitely something that happens a fair bit. Mooooost of the genuine infighting comes from Andurien being buddy-buddy with the Capellans and/or wanting to secede. The other big notable fuckery that happens is honestly sub-state agnostic, when Anton Marik stages his rebellion on a federal level.

Sometimes it feels more like "the writers forgot to include the FWL in the metaplot, so have some flimsy justification for pretending you matter in the form of a civil war or inter-state squabble".

That's when it's not Operation Guerrero-like "the FWL is totally winning, but nobody is going to remember or care about this in five months" brief interludes.

AAAAA! Real Muenster
Jul 12, 2008

My QB is also named Bort

What's the whole story with Skye being a separate entity on the map in this timeline? I know in Canon BT it has a very strong separititist sentiment so I would have to guess that they manage to actually pull off getting their freedom in this timeline.

GhostStalker
Mar 26, 2010

Guys, find a woman who looks at you the way GhostStalker looks at every bald, obese, single 58 year old accountant from Tulsa who managed to win $4,000 by not wagering on a Final Jeopardy triple stumper.

AAAAA! Real Muenster posted:

What's the whole story with Skye being a separate entity on the map in this timeline? I know in Canon BT it has a very strong separititist sentiment so I would have to guess that they manage to actually pull off getting their freedom in this timeline.

Clovis Lestrade and actual Melissa Steiner (and not her body double Jeana Clay as we were originally led to believe) got married after like the 4th mission of this LP, a Loki run into Tharkad that was effectively a double cross, after he dithered with his dad, the Duke Aldo Lestrade, over where to hold the wedding. Originally, Duke Lestrade wanted to marry off his useless dwarf of a son to the nominal head of the LyrCom so he could be the literal man pulling the strings outright instead of just heavy handedly through the shadows while having Melissa on house arrest (for her "protection" after the death of her mom in an incident involving the Kell Hounds, of course), he's so smart, nothing can go wrong with this plan.

So Melissa and his not so useless idiot of a son pull off a fait accompli after their marriage on Summer to declare Skye independent, with the support of the Duchess of Furillo, who is mourning the supposed death of her son, Caesar Steiner, in action against the Steel Vipers on Somerset. As goes her, as goes Defiance Industries since she's a major shareholder, so DefHes is in as well, and the rest of Skye falls in with them. Aldo is outplayed by his son, since the reason they use for declaring independence is that Lestrade was running the realm into the ground ever since Katrina Steiner died. They decide to stay cordial with the rest of the LyrCom though, even if Lestrade is furious.

So he scrounges up another Steiner to rule through, picking Frederick Steiner, the man who would become the first ComStar Precentor Martial in the original timeline. Fred also outplays Lestrade, arresting him for corruption and malfeasance after he is crowned Archon with his help. The thread voted to keep their relations cordial between Skye and Fred's LyrCom, even if there is diplomatic pressure (and commercial in the form of the latest HOGARTH'S HEROES movie and a visit to Skye from Hogarth himself) for them to rejoin the fold.

It doesn't happen just yet, and I guess as of the time skip, it stil, hasn't happened even if relations continue to be real cordial between the two, what with the neo-Star League Defense Force formed out of Task Force Serpent chilling in Kerenskye. What with them being one of the founding members of the New Star League when Melissa/Jeana, Clovis, and Morgan Kell helped rescue Carlos Marik from the Cappies Society Divine Guardians of the Four Cardinal Directions sentai squad and the Brotherhood of the Peach Garden Oath and MOTHERFUCKING LU BU and other assorted Three Kingdoms namesakes, alongside Star Colonel Dusk of the Steel Vipers and her bondsman Caesar Steiner, who was the one who helped develop the King Cobra and trained the Task Force Serpent warriors on melee in preparation for "Steiner Rules duels".

Granted, this is all from memory, so I might've gotten some of the details mixed up a bit, but that's a general overview of why Skye is independent in the PTNverse. Someone correct me if I'm majorly off track.

Man, remembering that beginning bit on Tharkad makes me want to reread that mission. That exploding gas tank set off by jumpjets, the failed DFA on the train missing their optional objective, etc. The Carlos Marik rescue mission is also a good reread, as is HOGARTH'S HEROES and everything with the political votes concerning the creation of Skye. Now I need to reread a whole bunch of stuff...

DivineCoffeeBinge
Mar 3, 2011

Spider-Man's Amazing Construction Company

GhostStalker posted:

Now I need to reread a whole bunch of stuff...

I keep thinking to myself "DCB, you should reread the thread and summarize all the poo poo that happened so PTN doesn't have to" and then I talk myself out of it because I'm not sure I have a firm enough grounding in the original timeline to know who half these people are.

I may still try and hammer something together for the new thread, but man, that would be a project and a half.

Defiance Industries
Jul 22, 2010

A five-star manufacturer


GhostStalker posted:

Someone correct me if I'm majorly off track.

GhostStalker posted:

the Duchess of Furillo


Her Grace Iris Steiner is a Grand Duchess, thank you very much.

Narsham
Jun 5, 2008

Rorahusky posted:

Makes me wonder how the Demon Hawks are doing as a whole, especially after Andurian. For that matter, I wonder what's up with the mercenary scene in general. I imagine that Comstar continuing to run the mercenary board is unlikely, since Comstar outright joined the new Star League, and the rest of the nations probably wouldn't be keen on relying on a hiring service run by a rival nation. Sounds like a good way to get all your contracts cancelled should a fight ever break out between you and the Star League.

My headcanon: the Clans make their final push, with aerospace and artillery devastating Republic forces but the Demon Hawks untouched. Then, a dropship lands nearby and a lone Hellstar emerges.

Clan Grandpa issues a Trial of Possession batchall: the entire Demon Hawks against the dropship and temporary use of a Carrack-class (with crew and fuel). Him versus Dadlas and the LAM.

The only questions in my mind are whether Kalma ends up going solo, Hellstar vs Dadlas, and whether he's cruel enough to spare Clan Grandpa his glorious death in battle.

Viva Miriya
Jan 9, 2007

Narsham posted:

My headcanon: the Clans make their final push, with aerospace and artillery devastating Republic forces but the Demon Hawks untouched. Then, a dropship lands nearby and a lone Hellstar emerges.

Clan Grandpa issues a Trial of Possession batchall: the entire Demon Hawks against the dropship and temporary use of a Carrack-class (with crew and fuel). Him versus Dadlas and the LAM.

The only questions in my mind are whether Kalma ends up going solo, Hellstar vs Dadlas, and whether he's cruel enough to spare Clan Grandpa his glorious death in battle.

Do this PTN. The last part. The rest sounds p lmao.

Last Transmission
Aug 10, 2011

You guys might be interested in the new and rebalanced PTN Battletech thread.

CourValant
Feb 25, 2016

Do You Remember Love?

@PTN, so, are we done in this thread then? I can move my bookmark over to the new one?

Zaodai
May 23, 2009

Death before dishonor?
Your terms are accepted.


CourValant posted:

@PTN, so, are we done in this thread then? I can move my bookmark over to the new one?

Just bookmark them both. That's what I did. :black101:

Artificer
Apr 8, 2010

You're going to try ponies and you're. Going. To. LOVE. ME!!
Godspeed, thread. May flights of LRMs sing thee to thy rest.

Viva Miriya
Jan 9, 2007

imgay

W.T. Fits
Apr 21, 2010

Ready to Poyozo Dance all over your face.
Well fought, PTN. Well fought, fellow Goons.

I look forward to the battles to come in the new thread.

GhostStalker
Mar 26, 2010

Guys, find a woman who looks at you the way GhostStalker looks at every bald, obese, single 58 year old accountant from Tulsa who managed to win $4,000 by not wagering on a Final Jeopardy triple stumper.

Welp, looks like is thread is done then, long live the new thread.

Leperflesh
May 17, 2007

On may 5th, 2011, I mixed alcohol, chopped onion, and a fish and set it on fire and drank it in this thread. Now, seven years later, I still feel 100% that it was worth it. Godspeed, thread.

Teledahn
May 14, 2009

What is that bear doing there?


Leperflesh posted:

On may 5th, 2011, I mixed alcohol, chopped onion, and a fish and set it on fire and drank it in this thread. Now, seven years later, I still feel 100% that it was worth it. Godspeed, thread.

I remember that. It was worth it.

Freakazoid_
Jul 5, 2013


Buglord
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CB3VgTF8Ds

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evilmiera
Dec 14, 2009

Status: Ravenously Rambunctious

Defiance Industries posted:

I AM GOING TO BUILD A WALL
AND I WILL MAKE THE INNER SPHERE PAY FOR IT

I'm just saying, when we capture Bondsmen, we aren't capturing their best

If you wanted to find a good way for me to switch allegiances away from the Clans, you succeeded.

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