Thanks for the nod marauder648.
I would like to keep the focus on dropships and when I get a chance I want to go over what the Clans have now examining the niche that they fill and if age requires their replacement. For example the Miraborg may indeed be the necessary replacement of the Titan-C.
We agree that the Ravens are the masters of all things naval and will take steps to ensure their continued supremacy. I think the invasion is expanding how the Clans view naval assets for many reasons including logistics and survivability especially when faced with some new InnerSphere craft. The Ravens ain't dumb though and perhaps may get on board heavy when calls for a naval upgrade come in hopes of getting ahead of things.
I think that all space assets with the possible exception of McKenna's Pride and Prinz Eugen are the property of the Free Guilds or rather strategic assets benefiting all the Clans with output shared equally.
According to the fluff most Clans, WarShips are ill wanted solhama and a DropShips only job is to get Warriors from A to B. The most aerospace minded Clans AFAIK are the Cloud Cobras and Ravens whilst the Shark's also are big ship users but only for trade.
And then you look at the Falcons with their seemingly endless march of Aegis class ships and commissioning a Nightlord and so forth. And then logic must sit there and go "The Clans DO care about WarShips, but they just use them very differently."
Basically because of their limited construction facilities, (until the War of Reaving where the Vipers managed to build a yard big enough to produce a Leviathan II in secret) with Lum probably being the only yard capable of making new WarShips of any size, WarShips are an asset that simply can't be risked.
The Clans do care for their naval assets just not for war.
Snow Ravens maintain their naval supremacy out of a need for survival among the Clans. A successful strategy given that their weak ground touman was so pathetic it couldn't qualify for Operation Revival. I mean if that ain't cause for absorption then what is? But no Clan raised a finger to even motion the notion. Combining this strategy with their political acumen they are the survivors of the Clan way based almost solely on this naval monopoly.
Cloud Cobra is more of an aerospace Clan which is similar to but not the same as the Ravens. They use their fighter fleet to augment their strength which has proven effective as nearly every Clan has integrated fighters directly into their ground based touman directly overtime. Their navy is more of a carrier concept used to project their strength outward and they don't want it to participate in combat directly.
It is my contention that the Goliath Scorpions look at their large naval fleet as a living museum which furthers their Seeking goals. Each ship is lovingly maintain and tells a story about the past which very much impacts the present and future. To this Clan it is part of their psyche IMO and subjecting it to danger such as direct combat is unthinkable or unfavorable at the least.
I never loved the idea of the Vipers building a yard in secret for the Leviathan and this is why I thought with the Marshall Yards they could perhaps challenge the Ravens by fielding a large fleet of droppers. I do have a vision for the Leviathans in this setting but again want to keep to dropships for now.
Yeah Diamond Shark is primarily established their fleet for commerce no doubt and actually might be the most inclined to use it to insure 'freedom of the black seas'. Their possession of the Babylon L-5 Yards would make a certain amount of sense could you please site, where you found this info Bradshaw (book title and page number). Also the Raven refit of the yard is interesting too.
I always think of the Blood Spirit participation in the Burrock Absorption as a fascinating example of how a Clan which rid itself of much of its fleet was able to deliver (albeit) with the element of surprise such a large portion of its ground based touman into battle against the Burrocks and Star Adders. Not only did they land but they also escaped so the Spirits are the one Clan IMO opinion who realizes its limitations and practices for a great offensive (yeah against Burrock) in spite of having a very small warship fleet.
A little of subject but want to mention don't forget we have some unknown Clan Warship classes from Strategic Operations (page 14-17) which has Clan Wolf first warship was the Molniya launched in 2951 and Jade Falcon's was the Peregrine launched in 2969 while Snow Raven launched something called the Corone in 2915. I know this is a bit off topic but none of these ships is currently in service so what happened to them? Were they from an age where ever briefly the Clans had naval trials??
In reality, to make any expansion or changes of the Clans naval program work, we'd have to go outside of the canon.
1 - First, the Clans are going to have to accept that their doctrine is wrong in regards to aerospace assets, especially DropShips. They are not just a glorified cargo scow that gets Warriors from A to B. Tukkayid, Luthen and more showed them that DropShips are vulnerable in space and on the ground and that the Spheroids WILL go for them in battle if they can because destroying a DropShip in space can severely impact the fight on the ground. So use to SafCon the Clans would need to be shaken from their complacency and the idiotic idea that the Inner Sphere is going to play by their rules because they expect them to.
2 - To do this you're probably going to have to work with the Ravens, in reality they are the only Clan with the expertise and the yard facilities to take the strain of a surge in DropShip building. If this means that the Invading Clans have to work out a deal with them to ship them resources from the Inner Sphere to the Raven's holdings then so be it. Work something out with the Sharks to ensure its 'fair' for all parties involved.
3 - The Clans have different designs and these could be shared or traded for production by other Clans in return for runs of Mechs or equipment or whatever. The Jaguars for example have the very very new Miraborg/Charybdis which is far superior to the aeging and unmodernized (for some unknown reason) Titan II. But they probably lack the resources to build it as well as the time, with them having to focus on rebuilding their shattered Tourman as a priority. So to get the resources they need, they might be convinced to trade the design with the other Clans. The same goes for the Vipers, their Noruff design is a potent ship and something that is needed to counter Spheroid tactics and hostile Assault DropShips.
4 - Spheroid WarShips. Something tells me that the Great Houses wouldn't keep their WarShip building program a secret. Its a big propaganda boost, flouting their industrial strength, their will, their techological expertise in facing the Clan threat and so on. And if this was made public through news or something, the Clans would hear about it. And the cold hard reality is that the Inner Sphere can EASILY outbuild the Clans once they get going. And this means that the Invaders are going to have to shake off the ghost of Edo and Turtle Bay and view it as an abberation. They'll need to have their own WarShips there just in case. And whilst the Houses probably won't be able to build up enough forces to counter the Clan's WarShip fleets for a decade, how long does that 'Truce' last again?
The Free Guilds and all those naval caches out there make it very possible for the Clans to field more than what they have. They have naval stockpiles including dropships upon which to draw so I can see Quicksilver Dropships working to fill gaps and augment capabilities like the Vengeance which I called for and Bradshaw recently took a stab at. Might post my version soon so we can discuss the design.
But how can the Ravens jump out ahead of this and keep control? Does Steel Viper engage in its new dropship challenge theory here? How are the newly active Free Guilds viewed by the Clans?
