OBT Forum

Here are some questions I answered on CBT that may help.
I got pm'd the following questions, but I thought I would answer them here so everyone gets the answers.

hm, you're doing very well so far, but isn't that a bit easy?

Yep, not a fan of the WoB and getting into the heads of religious fanatics is not my cup of tea.

Even without Terra and Gibson, WoB still ...
- has (or at least is short of gaining) control over the mothballed warship assets at Ross, Luyten an Ruins of Gabriel - without ComStar knowing of this. Including at least two NewGrange-class factory ships (Erinyes and Blake's Mercy). Erinyes is transformed into that asteroid throwing planet-killer.

Not in this AU.  The Blood and the Hidden Five do not exist, they are just a moon, not a space station, and 4 torched worlds.

- already has (or at least is short of gaining) control over the production/repair assets at Ruins of Gabriel (warship)

See above

- is gaining more and more control over the CircFed, since President McIntyre's Son Calvin is recruited by 6th of June (and maybe even already transformed into a Manei Domini). Especially since WoB didn't get their hands on Terra, and Gibson is lost ... they probably look for some other place to build their ground troops weaponry. Maybe in the CircFed?

Any influence they had just evaporated as they can't back it up anymore with regiments or production.  The various sects are going to war with themselves, making the FWL HPG network a bit of a mess and having Thomas consider a reconciliation with ComStar so that his state's communications don't fall apart.

The WoB is a skeleton crew now, as every spare body that was not A-list critical to running the HPG's was pushed into uniform once ComStar showed it would not roll over and die on Terra.

- already has (or at least is short of gaining) control over the rest of the hidden Five, including the production assets for Manei Domini and Magic Bullet bioweapons.

See above and with no Blood there are no MD cyber-soldiers

- has definitely infiltrated a very big part of the FWL, including the government, warship crews, ground forces and FWL intelligence.

ROM made inroads, but had fractured like the rest of the WoB and is too busy killing its own.  By 3065 ROM and Wob will have finished themselves off as viable threats.

- has control over every little piece of information the arrives in or leaves the FWL.

Yeah, but so does ComStar

- is gaining an aaaaaaawful amount of Credits in the FWL - and the worst part: absolutely noone knows of this.

And are pissing it up the wall in a zealot inspired holy civil war.

- already has (or at least is short of gaining) control over RWR Outpost #27, an eight inhabitable systems RWR-District, where Amaris trained his troops for the charge against the Hegemony. At least two of those systems had a production yard for warships.

Not in this universe

- has still solidly infiltrated ComStar and is since at least 5 years busy deleting alot of information in the ComStar archieves (about the Five, RWR Outpost #27 and I-don't-know-what-else).

True, but the same civil war has spilled out of the League, allowing ComStar to arrow in on many WoB ROM agents.  Alos, the fractured nature of ROM leaves very little coordination for ROM info coming in, so there is not a hell of a lot that can be done with it.

- has knowledge of the Superjump technology.

Not much use to them, unless they want to flee and strand themselves at the same time.  They have no military, so it does not do them a lot of good.

I still say sooner or later this will become a problem in your AU

Not if I don't let it, which through the outline above, pretty much neuters them.

(from my personal point of view WoB was made waaayyyy too powerful)

That was a canon in universe necessity to get from the FCCW to the end of the Jihad and match the DA setting data.

although not in the short term. WoB wasn't ready to kill the Clans when they saw themselves forced to start the Jihad, and without Terra and Gibson it will take them even longer now until they're ready to go. So the Master won't try anything stupid anytime soon.

They have no hope and the Master does not exist, as the Blood and Hidden don't either.  Thomas is dead or really is the FWL Thomas, I have not decided yet, but either way it does not really matter.

I already thought about how to get rid of them... because WoB is so deeply in everything it isn't quite easy :/

They are toast in this AU.  Sure there will be some fringe nutters hanging about, but in a generation, they will be a historical footnote.

Maybe if you need at some point in your story a time-out for the Inner Sphere, because the Clans are busy with themselves.

Nobody is getting a timeout in the naughty chair until I bury them.  I will be giving coverage to both Clan and IS factions as needed as the story develops.

ComStar gets knowledge that someone is deleting heavily in their archives, finds out it is WoB, Anastasius contacts fake Thomas, and Thomas admits that he's already fighting an (ineffective) war against his alter ego, named the Master. And Anastasius assembles a multinational Force to get rid of WoB (worked against the Jaguars, so why not against WoB).

Focht is dead, killed at Titan by the FWL during their naval strike and with no Blood or Master, this is not really necessary.

although ... the way you are writing now you'll find probably something better than that

That's very kind of you to say, but as you can see from the notes above, the WoB will kill off most of what is left of themselves and Thomas will be forced to make a deal with ComStar.

Thanks for all of your comments and interest, it did force me to consider some tings that I had not until this point and I hope you enjoy reading the remainder of the story.

The rational one, Crazy Thomas's last son.

OK, been a while on this one, but off we go again.  This is just a short chapter to bring everyone back up to speed.


“So saKhan Pryde, it would seem we have the Ghost Bear’s attention?”  Khan Phelan Kell said with a wry smile, as he looked through the command centre’s holotank at his recently recalled saKhan.

“It would Khan Kell, and they appear to be taking the matter most seriously, especially considering that both the Rasalhague and Leviathan have been in action over Satalice and wreaked havoc with Gamma Naval Star.”  saKhan Pryde answered with little emotion in her voice, her recent recall to Tamar from the front lines having made her usual dour disposition now somewhat more frosty than usual.  Though Khan Kell had been adamant that her recall had nothing to do with the stalled and now chaotic offensive in the Coreward sector of the Ghost Bear/Wolf boarder, it still galled her to be here.  However, if the Wolf defensive efforts in the Edgeward end of the border fell through, Tamar would be an interesting place in a month or two, as the Bear offensive, using troops that might otherwise have been used profitably against the Smoke Jaguars, was a fifty-fifty proposition for success.

Kell nodded and saKhan Pryde was able to see the red in his eyes through the glare of the holotank, mute testimony to the Khan’s long days since Clan Ghost Bear reacted to Marthe’s spoiling offensive.  “The Ghost Bears have certainly done what we wished by focusing on us, instead of Clan Smoke Jaguar, but their inability to do two things at once has us expending supplies and fighting for the short term future of the Clan.  We need to end this fight soon, but without loss of face, otherwise we will be in a position where we cannot supply our forces in the field.”

Marthe shrugged her shoulders, “If we can keep the pressure on and consolidate our troops where we need them, we can force the Bears into realising that the cost of the campaign so far is only a taste of what to expect if they go over onto a general offensive.  I think they may realise this already: Khan Jorgensen is nobody’s fool.”

Marthe thought back over the war so far, one started to divert the Ghost Bear’s attention from the hard-pressed Smoke Jaguars and prevent them from becoming the preeminent Clan in the Inner Sphere.  She had done her task, with troops that were not the match of those they were engaging, with the worlds of Holmsbu and Last Frontier falling quickly, though her other strikes meet with less than stellar success during the fighting in October.  What made matters worse was the general Ghost Bear withdrawal from Jaguar space late that month, once the Bears began their tantrum over what they saw as Wolf interference in their own private war, seeming to forget that they had done the same to the Jaguars in their war with the Nova Cats.  By November, the war began to expand and intensify, as the Wolves attempted to meet their initial aims of cutting the Bear’s corridor in half, whilst both sides reinforced and the Bears struck at the Wolves right down the entire border.   The Ghost Bear’s focus was a drive on Tamar by forces near the Tukayyid line, something the Wolf Clan could not ignore.  By the end of November, the Wolves had taken Holmsbu, but lost Susquehanna and Thannhausen, with the Bears fighting hard across the Spinward border area. 

Khan Kell then gambled with the Vipers by dispatching elements of Alpha and Beta into the fight south of Tamar, which stabilized the fighting there, recovering Thannhausen and gaining Utrecht, though Heiligendruez was lost in the south and Balsta fell in the north.  What was most devastating was the arrival of the two of the Ghost Bear’s three Leviathan-class Battleships over Satalice, where the entirety of Clan Wolf’s Gamma Naval Star, a Texas, two Black Lions, a Cameron and an Aegis were annihilated before the Bear ships jumped back to Alshain, heavily damaged but still fully operational.  The fact that the two ships made a single strike and then departed the war zone was notable for Marthe, as she took it to mean the Bears had set their own limits on how far they wished to take this war.

Marthe waved her hand at the map in front of her, “Khan Kell, we need to consolidate right along the border and end this war.  I suggest that we launch a strike to reclaim Heiligendruez, which barring additional Bear forces arriving in the region, should stabilise that section of the font, as we have the troops in theatre we require.  In the north, I suggest we Last Frontier and Holmsbu to reinforce the worlds we are already fighting on and look to reclaim Susquehanna and Balsta, whilst still endeavouring to take Trondheim for one more month, pulling off if we cannot secure it.”

Phelan smiled at Marthe and walked around the holotank to her, placing his hand on her shoulder, “Some days Marthe, I feel you are beginning to read my mind, but I agree.  With the Vipers moving material towards the FedCom border we can afford to keep the pressure on for a little longer, especially with two Galaxies arriving from the Homeworlds in February.  Even if the Bears are successful over the coming eight to twelve weeks, they will face ten fresh Clusters whose deployment will not compromise our other OZ dispositions.”

Marthe felt awkward with the sudden praise and physical contact from her Khan, being as formal and staid as she was and did not know how to respond.  Kell chuckled, “Don’t worry Marthe, no need to say anything, you’re not the type for words, especially those that have more than a military meaning.”

Marthe nodded and moved on quickly, then turned and moved to one of the bench seats that circled the holotank.  She picked up a data pad, which doubled as a controller for the holotank and tapped the screen a few times, “I would like to provide some thoughts on what is happening more broadly as well Kahn Kell.  I believe the wider conflicts may have some bearing on our own position.”

Kell smiled down at his saKhan and allowed her to forge on without hinting that he was aware of her discomfort, “Of course Marthe, your advice on those matters will be most appreciated.”

Marthe nodded once, crossed her legs and brought new data to life within the holotank, which now showed the Nova Cat, Smoke Jaguar and Draconis Combine territories.  “Khan Kell, as you are aware, the Ghost Bears withdrew from the Smoke Jaguar Occupation Zone with no worlds permanently changing hands, however, the Jaguars have now established an exclusive OZ between the Cats and the Bears.  This OZ is narrow closer to Terra, however, it has a solid base around Schuyler and has forced the Nova Cats into holding the flank themselves.  The Smoke Jaguars now control twenty-four systems with forty-two Clusters and twelve WarShips, allowing them to consolidate their strength somewhat, though the losses in naval vessels they have suffered, six in all, has weakened their overall position somewhat.”

“Much like us eh saKhan?”  Kell responded.

Marthe shrugged, “Not so much as we have a larger fleet, though we have lost six and captured two, the Nova Cats lost six as well and captured the Korat from the Jaguars, with the Bears losing three and Combine having lost one.”

“Twenty WarShips in three months is significant.”

“Yes it is my Khan, but not unexpected as doctrine over their use evolves.”

“True,” answered Kell, “go on.” He prompted his saKhan.

Marthe continued as though no interruption had occurred, “Clan Smoke Jaguar has also begun strikes into the Draconis Combine over the past weeks, with fourteen Clusters from Alpha, Beta and Delta Galaxies.  Seven worlds were targeted, all this side of the Truce Line, with an eighth, Dummaring, bypassed, though it will be cut off if the other worlds are all taken.  It would appear that Clan Smoke Jaguar is moving up hard on the Truce Line as a sign of their intent to lead the next race to Terra.”

Kell crossed his arm and stared at the flashing icons od Combine worlds under assault, “And Khan Howell quelling dissent within his ranks.”

Marthe grunted, “That as well, the Jaguar Khan continues to impress me.”

“He is certainly no mindless savage, but keeping a leash on the savages he leads for the next five years will be a trial for him.” Returned Kell.

“Yes it will,” answered Marthe before continuing, “Clan Nova Cat now controls twenty-five worlds and is contesting another three with the Combine, though I expect them to continue to try and flank the DCMS beyond Lonaconning, as it is proving a profitable little war for them so far.  They have thirty-seven Clusters and twenty WarShips in the Inner Sphere, which they will need to expand should they wish to continue pressing the Dragon.”

Marthe paused for a moment, picked up a glass of water from the small table that sat between a gap in the long bench seat, took a sip and then continued.  “There appears to be several Galaxies en route from the Homeworlds, in addition to the two of ours, with the Watch reporting it likely the the Vipers, Horses, Hellions and Jaguars have troops on the move.”

“Everyone is planning for the future.”  Kell said

Very nice (especially the maps) as always looks really good

OK, 14 maps covering January and February 3063 are available here:
https://www.mediafire.com/folder/ij747h7tnp2g3/Of_Flacons_and_Wolves


“And that, Prince Victor, you intolerable little prick, is how one goes about spanking a petulant child.”  Candace Liao leant back in her chair, steeplling her fingers and looking at the huge wall sized screen that sat across from her on the other side of the long teak table at which she sat.  Carvings of dragons and phoenixes decorated the table and matched the carvings on the room’s walls and ceiling and those cavorting in gold on the room’s burgundy carpet.

The map projected before her showed forty Federated Commonwealth worlds from Zavijava to Verdigries flashing red and with a quick flick of her wrist and the controller, the map jumped Coreward to show another dozen from Elume to Botany Bay flashing due to Clan assaults.  “And there is the icing on the cake you stupid little boy, courtesy of the House Liao and our friends in Clan Steel Viper.”

Candace’s exultations were disturbed as her brother Tormana Liao entered the room, “Gloating like father my dear sister, how it does become you.”

“Oh shut up Tormana!  We have been handed the opportunity to do to Davion what every Liao since Barbara has wanted to do, and I could not think of a smugger Davion to do it to.”  Candace’s voice was measured, but an undertone of heat lay within it.

Tormana, looking dapper and unruffled in a very dark green pin striped suit, dropped unceremoniously into the seat next to his older sister, “Of course dear sister-Chancellor, however, you do look like father when you do that.”

Candace dropped her hands and smiled, “I do, don’t I?  However, the fact remains that we may have given little Prince Perfect a situation he can’t deal with.”

Tormana leaned back as far as his chair would allow, then reached out and took the controller from his sister and brought the map back to centre on the Capellan Confederation.  “Perhaps Candace, but there is much that can still go wrong for us and our unreliable new allies.”  He pointed at the Taurian Concordat,  “For example, Protector Calderon does not trust us any more than he trusts the Davions and he would sink a knife in our back given half the chance.”

Candace shook her head, “He’s not that bad.”

Tormana shrugged and grimaced, “Perhaps, but those savages he leads would.  Nevertheless, he has deployed two to two and a half times what Davion has on the border and hit eleven worlds all at once.  I’m not sure if New Syrtis will be able to comprehend that size of an assault coming out of the Concordat, especially when our own offensives are added to the mix.”

“Prince Victor will comprehend enough and the key will be how the monster reacts.  If he even hints at behaving like he did on our former worlds in 3057, I’ll unleash a cocktail of weapons that will make Kali’s response seem measured and reasonable.”

Tormana levelled a flat stare at his sister, “He really did get under your skin back then, didn’t he?”

“Yes, he did,” she answered, paused and then continued, “It was his monumental arrogance and the assumption that his own actions against Liao guerrillas and troops were moderate and reasonable in light of what Kali did on New Aragon and his general attitude to Capellans in general.  I will not defend Kali’s actions, but his order to “…exterminate Liao sympathisers even suspected of supporting Kali…” and his support of his officer’s brutality against our people left me no choice but to face him down.  However, when he referred to St. Ives as his client state, that is patience with the House of Liao was running out and that he expected St. Ives to take all actions it could to support the Federated Commonwealth in ending the Capellan disease, I chose that moment to snap.”

Tormana laughed, “Snap is an understatement for what you said to him.”

Candace looked at her brother, “Perhaps, but from that moment the die was cast, though I do not think he ever realised what I planned.  Neither did Sun-Tsu, but then I have always found that few lack the vision to truly see where their actions will take them. Prince Davion might be learning and getting better at it, but the current war continues to show that he is still not the strategic thinker his father was.”

Tormana nodded and then changed the subject, “I have the preliminary reports on the various fronts and despite what you might think of some of our allies, they are performing well.”  Tormana waited to see if Candace would say something, when she did not, he zoomed the map into the Taurian section of the front. 

“As I said, the TDF hit eleven worlds, which was audacious, especially considering this is their first and largest offensive in centuries.”

Candace cocked her head and placed her hands on the dark table top, which caused her iridescent emerald robe to shimmer, “That is true, isn’t it, for all their bluster and steam, the Taurians rarely strike first.”

“First time for everything,” said Tormana, “However, they have managed to blood the AFFC’s nose and claim the worlds of Bromhead, Midale, Lindsay, Montour and Verdiegreis.  They have deployed fifteen Mech Regiments, six of them mercenary, seven Conventional Divisions and three Aerospace Regiments.  The AFFC, in my opinion, has the forces in the broader region to halt the TDF in a few months, however, by that stage the Taurians may have reclaimed most of what they lost in the Reunification War.  The TDF has lacked a bit of finesse in its advances, which is costing them, but I do believe, based on our intelligence, that the TDF can sustain it operations until October or November.  Just as importantly for the Taurians is that I expect their economy to drop by approximately 10-12% prosecuting this war, so the Protector won’t be able to fight for too long:  His people have become accustomed to certain living standards.”

Candace nodded slowly and reached out to pull across a copy of the notes Tormana was reading from.  “Do you think they can snatch Panpour as well?”

Tormana shook his head, “It is past the territory they once held and I don’t believe they would risk the justification of their “War to reclaim their lost worlds” by invading old Davion systems.  Protector Calderon was adamant on that point during the planning for the offensive.  He is a man of his word and a more stable and rational Taurian than we have been used to of late.”

Candace grimaced and dropped the folder, “Pity he lacks real ambition.  What of our assaults?”

Tormana beamed a smile at his sister, “As you are aware, we have dispatched thirty-one Mech Regiments, twenty-three of them House troops, twenty Conventional Divisions and eight Aerospace Regiments into Davion territory.  We have meet with stunning success in the drive towards Liao, nearly cut the Ziliang Salient in some rather bloody fighting and are currently stalled, but in a good position to begin cutting the Kittery Salient.”

“What have we taken?” Candace asked with a hard stare.

“Ten worlds: Frazer, Glentworth, Hunan, Jonzac, Kafr Silim, Pleione, Safe Port, St. Andre, Styk and Tsitsang.”

Candace laughed aloud and slapped her brother on the back, “Say that again.”

Tormana repeated himself and chuckled, “It does sound good, doesn’t it?”

“Yes.” responded Candace

“Oh, and there is something else you might like dear sister.”

“What is that?”  Candace gave Tormana a quizzical look.

Tormana clapped his hands twice and two members of the Prefecorate Guards entered, carrying what looked to be a large golden banner.  “In addition to destroying the 1st Kittery Training Battalion and the 8th Federated Commonwealth RCT,” the two soldiers then moved apart, raised the banner’s poles and started to walk away from each other, unveiling it, “your noble troops on Frazer have destroyed the Davion Assault Guards and taken their banners.”

Candace’s jaw dropped and remained there for a moment as she took in the banner before her, which showed the head of an Atlas set on a stylized version the Davion Royal Brigade's crest.  The banner was covered in battle honours from many wars against the foes of the Davions, including many in green, with worlds named in white and few in black, showing the victories and defeats the regiment had experienced against the Capellan Confederation.

“I thought you might like it.  I had is couriered here with the high value prisoners we have taken in the Ziliang Salient.”

Candace was still smiling, then she waved her hand and the two soldiers furled the banner and began to move from the room, “Yes, I do like it.  I think I might hang it in the Throne Room.  Now down to specifics.  How are the three assaults actually proceedings?”

Candace had always impressed Tormana with her ability to change track, but he was used to it and got back to his briefing.  “The assault towards Liao goes well and we should be able to link up with the advance of the Free Worlds by May or June, though I doubt we will be able to get ahead of them and regain Nanking.”

Candace pursed her lips before stating, “The price you pay for revenge.  We can deal with the League in future, if their current offensive is any indicator of their will for a real fight.”

Tormana leaned back, “True, though it would be nice to have Nanking’s resources.  Nevertheless, we hold Styk and the main line of Davion resistance has been clearly breached.  I expect all of our primary targets will fall, however, I do not think we will advance much beyond those due to resource constraints and AFFC reinforcements.  Nevertheless, our troops will be landing on Liao within a week.”

“What units have you dispatched?”

“Warrior House Dai Da Dhi, the Harloc Warriors and the 3rd Regiment of McCarron’s Armoured Cavalry and several supporting formations.”

“That should be sufficient.”  Responded Candace.

Tormana continued, “The assaults into Kittery have not met with the success of the other strikes, though I expect that to change by the end of the month.  Spica is presenting some issues, but we have the advantage on Kittery.  The main issues I see there is AFFC reinforcements arriving on Mentasta and Weekapaug and preventing a closure of the salient.  In that case I suggest we cut our losses and hold what we have around Kittery.”

“You don’t think we should push to ease the pressure on St. Ives.”  Candace’s attachment to St. Ives had led to her requiring an assault into the Kittery Salient.

“Whether we clear the Kittery area or not, the threat to St. Ives will be minimised for a considerable period of time.”

“Perhaps.” Candace responded, but her lack of further comment indicated that Tormana could proceed.

“”Further Edgeward, we have nearly cut the Ziliang Salient from the Federated Suns, with only Sirdar holding the corridor open.  I plan to dispatch additional units freed from our successful assaults in the region to assist in the fighting there, however, I also plan to hedge our bets and hit additional worlds nearby to make a second closure:  Cotoacallo, Abruzzi and Courcellete are the logical targets.”

Candace nodded, “And the head of the salient?”

“Fighting there has been heavy,” continued Tormana, “Some of Davion’s better regiments remained there despite the Clan threat.  The Federated Suns Armoured Cavalry has driven off the assault on Ziliang and I expect General Rennard to move the regiment and cause us no end of headaches before we put them down.”

“They are certainly an efficient regiment.” She paused, “It’s a pity they did not have the decency to suffer the same fate as the Assault Guards.  How are our logistics?”

Tormana, shifted in his seat as he reached for a new document.  “Tolerable, for now.  Supplying such a huge offensive was always going to be difficult and expenditures are at or about where they I predicted them to be, which is about 30% greater than what the staff had believed.  Currently, we have enough supplies on hand to maintain our offensive tempo for five, maybe six months.  After that, our ability to maintain any sort of combat actions will be severely curtailed.”

“Hence why I feel we may need to move on Nanking.  Every facility we can take is critical to our future needs and hang what the Captain-General thinks.”

“I disagree.” Said Tormana forcefully, “To throw aside our shaky alliance after a month will dam us and dam the effort to cut the Federated Commonwealth in half.  We can strike at Axton, Demeter and Tikonov if the AFFC falls apart, but if we strike at Nanking, the League will withdraw from the war and we will face the Davion armies on our own.”
Candace folded her arms, “You are right, but I don’t like it.  Nanking was our world thirty years ago and was one of our brightest jewels.”

“There will be other wars and the League cannot remain united for ever.” Tormana’s answer was delivered in a soothing tone: He genuinely sympathised with his sister, but the realities of the CCAF, it size and logistics had kept him firmly focused on the achievable.

Neither spoke for several minutes, then Candace seemed to wake up, “What of our other allies, how goes their wars?”

Tormana smiled, “You will be happy to know the Theodore Kurita has managed to put one over Thomas Marik.”

“Really, how delightful.”

“Yes, with the funds the Free Worlds provided to Kurita for mercenaries, he has bought up contracts for twenty regimental sized formations.  Twelve are poised to strike at the four targets the Combine has in the Terran Corridor and the other eight are on their merry way to the Clan border.”

Candace’s eyes narrowed, “He sends us all, and Prince Davion, a message.  He will use what force is necessary for the good of the Combine, shows that the Combine will be used by no one and lets us all know that in using mercenaries, his claim to those four worlds will be contingent upon his willingness to keep them contracted.  He believes by doing so he holds the key to controlling the flow of supplies through the corridor and can placate Davion, whilst remaining on our good side.”

Tormana raised his hands, “If you say so, but to me it was more of case of needing those troops against the Cats and Jaguars.”

Candace’s retort held heat, “I do say so because it is so. Now what of the offensives.”
Tormana, chastised and knowing that pressing the issue would be a lost cause continued, “The League has hit eight systems in to separate strikes, one aimed at Nanking, the other in the Terran Corridor. They have taken four worlds at little real cost to themselves, but I expect that the FWLM and the DCMS will face the full brunt of the AFFC counterattack.” 

He pressed a button on the controller and brought up a new map, which showed the area around Terra, with tow red lines running across it.  “Those worlds within those two red lines are the critical corridor for the AFFC.  They must keep that link clear, or mostly clear to ensure the safety and control of the link that joins the two halves of the Commonwealth.  The League now controls two – Thorin and Chara – and is fighting on another, whilst the Combine will strike at four more in February.  It is here that the war will be decided and here where the AFFC may well deploy WarShips, which the FWLN will handily dispatch.”

Candace harrumphed, “That is if the League keeps its gander up.  I have limited faith in their ability to go the distance in a real fight.”

“As do I.” Answered Tormana, “The DCMS’s arrival should give them some backbone.”
Candace changed tack again, “And what of our colleagues on the Clan Front?  They best be seeing success as getting them to agree to strike when we did was a master class in diplomacy with base idiots.”

Candace thought back on the eleven months of discussions with the Steel Vipers and later Ice Hellions and Hell’s Horsmen.  Strategic thinking was not their forte, but the Horses at least saw the benefits and were able to talk the Vipers around.  The Hellions followed from there, but there were at least two dozen times the discussions nearly fell apart, and all the Capellans had asked for was to launch any future assaults in concert with the strikes to close the Terran Corridor.  “We are never negotiating with Clansmen again, they are too stupid by half.”

Tormana smirked ruefully, “A least the ones we dealt with were.  Still, they are efficient little killers and have, it would appear, taken three worlds apiece from the Lyrans, with more to come.  I doubt the Hellions or Horses will go far, as they did not appear to have much in the way of force deployed to the Inner Sphere, however, the Vipers looked to be of use to us, at least until the most recent news from the Combine arrived stating that the Wolves and Bear had stopped fighting.”

Candace grunted, “Can’t trust a Clansmen to do what is needed.  Kell’s peace has the Vipers watching their back no doubt.  Still, as long as they kill a few Davions and Steiners and take a few worlds, it will keep much of the Federated Commonwealth’s strength focused on the Clan front and not against us.”

Tormana zoomed the map out to take in the entire Inner Sphere, “True dear sister, very true indeed.”

Yeah, the FedCom just got multi-kicked in the bollocks.

However, Victor is his father's son and his response will be epic.

What specifically don't you like and why?  I only ask as criticism is better then praise in tryig to improve.