Confederation, languages like Chinese, Russian, and Vietnamese are oftentimes secondary languages—and in some communities primary languages—for large percentages of this region’s population. Likewise, those cultures remain popular, and even predominant, on numerous worlds throughout the region, especially those absorbed within the past century.
It is no surprise, then, that a number of opposition and terrorist groups operate within the Capellan March, attempting to overthrow the Federated Suns government or at least to turn the tide of popular support against the Davions. Their efforts, however, have met with nothing but wholesale failure. Not only have the DMI and MIIO, in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies, forced these organizations to maintain a low profile lest they fall prey to raids and preemptive assaults, but they enjoy very little support among the populace. The simple fact is that, once the populations of absorbed worlds realize the freedoms availed them by the Federated Suns, they have little desire to return to the oppression of the Capellan Confederation.
On the average, the worlds of the Capellan March are prosperous and claim good technological advancements, though the level of education is just slightly lower than the national mean. That said, there are a number of extremely prosperous and advanced worlds within this region on par with the Golden Worlds of the Crucis March.
Moreover, the region boasts some of the most industrialized worlds in the entire nation, providing approximately forty percent of the Federated Suns’ industrial output and almost fifty percent of its military production.
Still, there is a dark side to the region. Many of the Capellan and Periphery border worlds are rightly considered part of the “Outback”
or “Skid Row.” Officially, the government position has been to spend only limited resources on worlds that showed little potential and were likely to be attacked or conquered by the Suns’ enemies. Unfortunately, this has prevented many worlds from realizing their full potential, prompting outcries against this “conspiracy of oppression.”
turnover), the number and names of any natural satellites around the planet, local gravity, atmospheric pressure and content (relative to Terran standards), surface water coverage, equatorial temperature (and dominant planetary environmental conditions), and the highest form of native life. In addition, the write-ups include the positions of any jump point recharge stations, along with the class of the local ComStar HPG facility and the planetary population size (based on the 3064 Ministry of Ways and Means Census Estimate.)
The final statistic is a five-letter code known as the Universal Socio-Industrial Index Rating (USIIR). The USIIR code uses an A through F grading system to represent (in order) a settled world’s level of technological sophistication, industrial development, dependence on imported raw materials, industrial output (relative to population), and agricultural dependence (again, relative to population). The Universal Socio-Industrial Level Reference Table on the previous page provides further expansion on these grades.
CApELLAN MArCh
The frontline in the centuries-long battle against the Capellan Confederation, the Capellan March has grown significantly since its far more humble beginnings during the time of the Five Princes.
This March is broken down into eight political Administrative Areas and eight military Polymorphous Defense Zones—organized into two Combat Theaters—with a total of 147 inhabited systems. Given that many of those worlds were once claimed by the Capellan
Dark Nebula
INNER SPHERE CIRCA 3067
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BrOCkwAY World Name: Brockway
Noble Ruler: Duchess Persephone Norinn Star Type (Recharge Time): K7IV (198 hours) Position in System: 4th
Time to Jump Point: 3.70 days
Number of Satellites: 2 (Colbert, Jurissa) Surface Gravity: 1.16 some potential for mining and other resource extraction. These findings kept colonists away for decades, but
when they finally arrived, they found a world of opportunities. Despite the overbearing heat and extremely rugged terrain, the world was home to a variety of hardy flora and fauna that not only thrived in these conditions but also proved edible and nutritious. Thanks to those first settlers, who sold the fruits of their new homeworld abroad, otherwise marginal worlds like Brockway became viable options for colonists.
Brockway was originally a Taurian holding, though during the Reunification War the system was one of several that were occupied and claimed by the Federated Suns. Since then, the world has played an important role in the defense of the nation, allegedly serving as a communications node for listening posts along the Taurian border and as a primary AFFS forward operating base. It is little wonder, then, that the Taurians have attacked the world dozens of times over the centuries.
ChESTErTON World Name: Chesterton Noble Ruler: Duke Errol Fenlon
Star Type (Recharge Time): G9V (190 hours) Position in System: 5th
Time to Jump Point: 5.82 days
Number of Satellites: 5 (Angela, Iannius, Moira, Nochus, Willus) Surface Gravity: 1.13 explorers. Strategically located near several developing systems and with an abundance of fresh water, Chesterton became a natural trade crossroads, which ultimately resulted in it becoming the center of the Chesterton Trade Federation
and the capital of the Chesterton Commonality. Chesterton lost most of its worlds to the Federated Suns prior to the Star League era and was itself absorbed into the Federation in the 24th century.
Throughout the centuries, the Confederation has made dozens of attempts to reclaim the world, in both the military and political realms, all but destroying its infrastructure in the process.
Today, Chesterton is a thriving world. The tech boom of the 3030s and 3040s brought vitality back to the world, while the lasting peace gave its people the chance to rebuild shattered industries. Mining and mineral extraction support not only standard heavy industry but also the nation’s flourishing pharmaceutical industry. Likewise, ranches across six of the world’s nine small continents produce large exports of wools and fur as well as a moderate export of meats. The University of Chesterton, located just outside of the world’s eponymous capital city, has likewise significantly benefited from the advances of the past four decades and is recognized as a galaxy-class educational institution.
kAThiL World Name: Kathil
Noble Ruler: Duke Petyr VanLees
Star Type (Recharge Time): F4V (175 hours) Position in System: 3rd
Time to Jump Point: 16.10 days Number of Satellites: 1 (Loren’s Folly) Surface Gravity: 1.0 Perhaps next only to New Syrtis, Kathil is the most important world in the Capellan March and certainly among the five most important
dedication of the James McKenna Shipyards in 2602 and cemented when General Motors established its largest manufacturing facility there, Kathil’s star rose quickly and shone brightly. It wasn’t long
FEdErATEd SuNS AT A gLANCE
before the world had become a center for the Star League’s military industry. The Federated Suns inherited Kathil after the fall of the Star League, but despite repeated and concerted assaults on the part of the Capellan Confederation, the world remained an incredibly important cog in the Davion military machine—manufacturing materiel from space vessels to BattleMechs to a wide variety of vehicles to weapons to spare parts and ammunition.
Kathil has three large continents—Hurste, Muran, and Thespia—and a series of oceans that span the world. Muran is the largest and most important of the continents, home to the world’s capital of District City as well as the majority of its heavy industry. Its climate varies significantly, with the mountainous western reaches almost constantly covered in clouds and deluged by rain, vast expanses of arid reaches on the other side of the mountains and more temperate regions further to the east and north—the only portion of the continent that can truly support agriculture. Hurste is Kathil’s breadbasket, where the majority of the world’s food is produced; agriculture is a difficult industry, however, as Kathil’s vegetation is noticeably chlorophyll-poor and has wide expanses of arid regions only suitable for farming with significant irrigation. Thespia is the smallest of the continents and also the least hospitable; its deserts and mountains yield ores that help support the world’s manufacturing industry, but only with difficulty.
Not all of Kathil’s operations are terrestrially based, however. The James McKenna Shipyards actually consist of two separate space facilities. One is a large complex of spacedocks positioned at the system’s zenith point, where DropShip and JumpShip repairs and refits are conducted for military, government, and privately operated vessels, as well as construction on new JumpShips. Undamaged by the FedCom Civil War, these spacedocks are operating around-the-clock at full capacity, yet private ships remain on a 12- to 18-month waiting list for major service, longer if ship-wide overhauls are required. The orbital yards, significantly upgraded over the past four decades, service and manufacture a wide variety of DropShips, as well as the Avalon-class WarShip. The orbital yards are powered by a mix of fusion reactors as well as massive terrestrial solar arrays that directly beam energy to the yards via microwave link.
kiTTErY World Name: Kittery
Noble Ruler: Duchess Laika Nupan
Star Type (Recharge Time): G4III (185 hours) Position in System: 3rd
Time to Jump Point: 7.96 days
Number of Satellites: 2 (Ming, Tai-Shan) Surface Gravity: 0.88
Atmosphere Pressure: Standard (Breathable) Surface Water Coverage: 67 percent Equatorial Temperature: 40° C (Tropical) Highest Native Life: Mammals
Recharging Station: Nadir HPG Class Type: B
Population Size: 987,240,000 Socio-Industrial Levels: D-D-B-C-A Absorbed into the Federation in 3005, the world of Kittery plays an important role in the defense of the Capellan March. It sits as the point of a major salient into the former St.
Ives Compact, where it has served as a major staging area for military units poised for deep strikes into the Capellan Confederation. The planet
has provided aid and other civil assistance to those St. Ives worlds that have required it, both following the Fourth Succession War and most recently during and after the Confederation’s invasion and takeover of the Compact.
That Kittery has served such a vital need for the majority of this century has kept the world relatively calm. The first few decades after its liberation from the Confederation saw significant uprisings, spurred by Capellan nationalists and funded by Sian. The Maskirovka-sponsored Kittery Tong posed serious problems until the end of the Fourth Succession War, when a renewed national spirit—as well as an increase of attention on the part of MIIO—broke the power of the Tong and the Capellan nationalists, first in the capital of Can Fu City and then across the planet. Moreover, the aid provided by the world’s inhabitants to other former Capellan worlds gave them the opportunity to aid their cultural brothers and sisters, which helped both them and those they were aiding in accepting Davion rule.
Centuries of Capellan oppression prevented the world from prospering to its full potential. Its population has exploded since the 3030s, but the world is more than capable of supporting a population many times its current size. Its only major industry is farming, and Kittery supplies worlds up and down the Capellan March with the food they need. Kittery is home to one of the march’s largest basic military training bases, where the Kittery Regional Training Battalion also trains MechWarriors for the AFFS.
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NANkiNg World Name: Nanking
Noble Ruler: Duke Anson Jaekel
Star Type (Recharge Time): G1V (182 hours) Position in System: 4th
Time to Jump Point: 9.75 days
Number of Satellites: 4 (Chang-o, How-Chu, Kun-Lun, Yi) Surface Gravity: 1.06 Mankind’s Exodus from Terra and, due to its location and natural resources, became one of the first early trade centers. After being incorporated into the Tikonov Grand Union, it naturally developed into a commerce powerhouse, further supplying dozens of systems with its abundant food exports. Under the oppressive Capellan Confederation, however, it gradually became a center for “correct socio-political thought”—in short, a home base for one of the
vaunted Warrior Houses and location of the Nanking Philotechnique Institutes, where specially selected students (those with the right parents and who were absolutely devoted to the Liao family) could gain advanced degrees in programs that emphasized “philosophical”
(read “political”) training over academics. On top of that, Nanking hosted a regional naval base and significant CCAF military bases.
Nanking was spared the devastation of the Fourth Succession War, joining the nineteen worlds of the Tikonov Free Republic under former Capellan Colonel Pavel Ridzik. The majority of the world’s people were happy to join Ridzik, the “Golden Child of Tikonov,” and with the aid of the MIIO rid the world of the rabid Capellan nationalists.
Prominent ideologues and political officers were removed from office, in many cases tried and executed for their crimes, and the professors of the Philotechnique Institutes deported or imprisoned; the Warrior House staff experienced the same treatment. Still, many pro-Capellan individuals went underground and engaged in a campaign of terrorism, and it took the combined efforts of Nanking’s citizens and the MIIO to rid the world of these terrorists.
Nanking once again prospered in the decades following the Fourth Succession War. Nearly a fifth of all Capellan commerce had flowed through Nanking in the previous years; in short order, it soon became a crossroads for some half of the commerce flowing back and forth between the Federated Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth, and later played a similar role for trade flowing into the Free Worlds League (and even the Capellan Confederation). The Philotechnique Institues were at first turned into primary and secondary educational facilities until new schools could be constructed, afterwards reopening as the Nanking University, which soon served students across the Sarna March.
With a bountiful agricultural output, a high-tech heavy industry and plentiful natural resources—including large deposits of copper and platinum—Nanking nevertheless benefited tremendously from the tech boom of the 3030s and ’40s. Ancient factories were upgraded with lostech, farms provided new equipment, and inefficient processes replaced. Kallon Weapons Industries is the largest and most important corporation on the world, so much so that Nanking’s capital of Kallontown is named after it, though to ethnic Capellans it is also known as Yang-ku.
NEw SYrTiS World Name: New Syrtis Noble Ruler: Duke George Hasek
Star Type (Recharge Time): K5IV (197 hours) Position in System: 4th
Time to Jump Point: 4.12 days Number of Satellites: 1 (Varnay’s Star) Surface Gravity: 1.0 century, though due the perpetual ice age in which the world seems to be stuck, it wasn’t colonized until the late 2260s, and then only by those looking to mine its narrow equatorial temperate zone. The
easy mining didn’t last for long, however, but by the time the large metal companies came in with the intent of strip-mining the rest of the world, the Haseks were in power on New Syrtis. Rather than let their homeworld’s fragile, if largely arctic, ecosystem be destroyed by companies looking to make quick profits, they closely regulated nearly every facet of industry, from mining to refining to manufacturing. This both ensured the long-term viability of their world as well as their own long-term financial solvency.
It was the Haseks’ influence that helped cement New Syrtis as the capital of the Capellan March, though the Hasek family did not gain the Duchy of New Syrtis and noble fiefdom of the Capellan March until the beginning of the Second Succession War. Due to its position as military and political capital, as well as its extensive military industry, the Capellan Confederation has targeted the world scores of times throughout the Succession Wars. The heavy AFFS presence, combined with the world’s harsh environments, has brought a swift end to every Capellan attempt.
Saso, capital of New Syrtis, is located on the northern hemisphere continent of Mawreddog. Not only is it home to the Hasek ducal palace and Capellan March governmental centers, it hosts the University of
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0
Saso and many different manufacturers, including Johnston Industries in nearby Cilitren. Located deep beneath the ice and limestone is “The Cave,” military command center for the Capellan March. Orbiting the world at the L-4 point are the New Syrtis Shipyards, manufacturers of several different classes of DropShips and an incredibly busy repair and refit facility for DropShips and WarShips; a spacedock at the zenith jump point also services JumpShips.
NOvAYA zEMLYA World Name: Novaya Zemlya Noble Ruler: Premier Estefani Shako Star Type (Recharge Time): G2IV (183 hours) Position in System: 4th
Time to Jump Point: 9.12 days
Number of Satellites: 3 (Doriya, Kanto’s Ground, Ust) Surface Gravity: 1.04 that predated the Star League and necessitated the acceptance of the Ares Conventions. It was first colonized in the early 23rd century
by ethnic Russians, and before long it became a popular destination for those seeking a good life as far away from the Terran government as they could get—and at that time Novaya Zemlya was far enough away to get out from under the oppressive thumb but still be close enough to civilization to call on help, if needed.
The world thrived, its people forming close bonds with the fledgling Crucis Pact worlds as well as the St. Ives Mercantile Association and, unsurprisingly, the Tikonov Grand Union. The Federated Suns had the most to offer, however, and the world joined in 2325, though it still retained its cultural ties with the people of Tikonov and its trade with St. Ives. Those ties were forever sundered in 2399 when the nascent Capellan Confederation, losing ground in its war with the Federated Suns, dispatched a fleet to raze the world. This was the first orbital bombardment of a planet using a fleet of armed space vessels, and it very nearly wiped out life on Novaya Zemlya. Seventy-five percent of the world’s population was wiped out in the assault. Cities were leveled, infrastructure destroyed, and even farmlands were blasted;
those that somehow survived the direct attacks then had to contend with the nuclear winter caused by the dust and debris, much of it radioactive, blown into the atmosphere.
Relief assistance came immediately, but, even after centuries of cleanup that eventually included the best efforts of the Star League, it would be centuries more before the world began its slow recovery.
By the beginning of the 31st century, the few hardy survivors found themselves joined by more and more new-age colonists, who were delighted to see some of the world once again farmable. That also marked the AFFS’ renewed interest in the world; after they established a Combat Training Center and a major materiel rehabilitation and reclamation center there, more and more business came. Federated Industries is the largest investor in Novaya Zemlya, having established a large plant in the planetary capital of Arkangel. The world took on its most important role during the FedCom Civil War when the dual military headquarters of the Kathil PDZ and Operations Area moved there, where it will likely remain for years to come.
TikONOv World Name: Tikonov
Noble Ruler: Lord Stephan Yurikev
Star Type (Recharge Time): G8V (189 hours) Position in System: 3rd
Time to Jump Point: 6.19 days
Number of Satellites: 3 (Andropov, Andruyev, Ashkilov) Surface Gravity: 1.1 Hegemony in the early 22nd century.
With an abundance of natural resources and inhabitable land, it
With an abundance of natural resources and inhabitable land, it