MechWarrior Families, A Dying Breed? 11/03/3133
INN - Interstellar News Network
John Chandler hails from a long and distinguished line in the former Free Worlds
League. Many among his ancestors were officers and heroes, brave men and women
who stood up for their realm and fought the good fight. Peter Chandler, for instance,
was the youngest of his clan to serve as an officer in the Regulan Hussars, and his
heroic defense of civilian lives during the battle for Tellmann IV earned him the
Regulan ankh over a century ago. Peter’s grandson, Morten—John’s grandfather—
led the resistance forces against the Blakists on Tiber, and would later fight alongside
Devlin Stone towards the end of the Jihad. The glorious Chandler tradition extends far
back into history, since the first of the family made a name for himself as a war hero
on the Canopian front during the Star League’s Reunification War.
But today, like his father before him, John is no soldier. Indeed, he has never even
seen a day of combat in his life on his peaceful agrarian idyll in the foothills of
Skorbell on Skat. His medals, lovingly preserved in display cases lining his wall, are
actually those earned by generations before his father. The famous Chandlers of
Tiber, one of the Free Worlds League’s mighty MechWarrior families, are now
history. But they are not alone.
Like thousands of others throughout the Inner Sphere, the Chandlers are the remains
of a social class of pseudo-nobility that has been on a steady decline since the middle
of the last century. Once, the MechWarrior families were more common, held in a
regard that verged on awe as the centuries of the Succession Wars dragged on.
MechWarriors, once soldiers in an army, having proven their worth to their lords,
earned the personal ownership of their BattleMechs. As ’Mech manufacturing slowed,
these machines became heirlooms, and those who upheld the standards of their lords
in battle came to earn land holds and patents of nobility themselves, in payment for
their dedication, after generations of service.
Thus were born the MechWarrior families of old—a new breed of knights, baronets,
and other new nobility, whose power centered on the BattleMechs that were their
birthright. Dispossession, the loss of these avatars of war, was their ultimate bane,
but many of them could command armies of their own, ruling warriors who served as
vassals and squires.
The new technology that suddenly became available in the 3030s began the decline of
these families. Improved production made ’Mechs less rare, and more powerful
weapons made them easier to kill. The Clan invasion shattered dozens of the ancient
MechWarrior families, as did the FedCom Civil War, and the Jihad that soon followed.
Increasingly, the MechWarriors who came to the field were soldiers again, piloting a
machine that had not been handed down through the generations, but merely assigned
by the House that built it. They had no patents of nobility, they were not knights, but
part of a rank and file army. But though the cataclysmic wars of the latter 31st
century dwindled their numbers, ironically enough, it would be peace that truly sent
the MechWarrior families on the path toward extinction.
“My grandfather had enough of war, I suppose,” says Chandler, indicating a
holograph of Morten Chandler, standing before his prized Trebuchet, a 50-ton ’Mech
that survived more than eight generations of Chandler MechWarriors. “He followed
Stone, thanks to Duchess [Alys Rousset-]Marik, wanted to become a farmer, and
sold off Ol’ Mandy [the Trebuchet].”
Devlin Stone’s Military Material Redemption Program demilitarized many of the
MechWarrior families, as well as mercenaries and other private ’Mech owners by
offering something the old title-based system did not: security. Under the older
system, MechWarrior families looking to retain their status needed not only to keep
their machines, but also to continue on in service to their liege lords. Dispossession
thus not only represented the loss of the machine, but of the titles, and the landholds
that often came along with it. Conversely, a warrior could also become dispossessed
for any act of defiance against the liege lord, resulting in all of the same
consequences, in a process often referred to as entailment. Thus, MechWarrior
families had to maintain an active warrior in every generation, or be willing to
surrender their lands and their futures to someone more worthy.
The MMRP offer, on the other hand, offered full citizenship, wealth, and land—if not
a noble title—for those willing to part with their tools of war, all without a
corresponding requirement of ongoing military service to a liege lord. The warriors
could at last settle down, raise their families, and tend to their own needs.
“Yes, it was a good trade,” says Chandler, even after admitting he sometimes
wonders what the life of the MechWarrior might have been like. “Sometimes, a man
has to know his limitations. What good is all the finery and the status of being a
MechWarrior knight, after all, if you’re always being asked to risk it all for some
politician somewhere?”
Not every MechWarrior family was so willingly dispossessed, however. For a time,
organizations of MechWarrior families formed, attempting to hold onto their power,
or influence the Great Houses. Many of these even disbanded, however, after the rise
of The Republic, as public sentiment turned more and more against the warrior-
centric system in the post-Jihad era, and decommissioning programs like the MMRP
gained momentum. Today, fewer true MechWarrior families remain than the legions
of old. Of those that are left, such as the Great Houses of Steiner, Kurita, Davion, and
Liao, or the smaller Houses like the Centrellas, Sandovals, Tormarks, and Campbells,
are perhaps the heartiest of this old guard. Yet they are not alone. Though the
numbers of families are shrinking, joining their ranks have been such “upstart”
families as the Knights of the Sphere. The warriors among the Knights form a new
breed of titled MechWarriors in their ownership of their machines (a mark of The
Republic’s trust), and their extended families may thus benefit from the same stature
as such forebears.
But are the MechWarrior families a dying breed, or are there signs of a recovery close
at hand? Some experts believe that the recent rise in inter-factional fighting throughout
The Republic may yet reverse the decline of the MechWarrior families, should more
MechWarriors become knighted to address the crisis, while others struggle to stake
their own claims. Though many in the Inner Sphere may still hold to the belief that the
MechWarrior family belongs in our more warlike past, the experts claim that
extinction of the MechWarrior families is most unlikely.
INN - Interstellar News Network
John Chandler hails from a long and distinguished line in the former Free Worlds
League. Many among his ancestors were officers and heroes, brave men and women
who stood up for their realm and fought the good fight. Peter Chandler, for instance,
was the youngest of his clan to serve as an officer in the Regulan Hussars, and his
heroic defense of civilian lives during the battle for Tellmann IV earned him the
Regulan ankh over a century ago. Peter’s grandson, Morten—John’s grandfather—
led the resistance forces against the Blakists on Tiber, and would later fight alongside
Devlin Stone towards the end of the Jihad. The glorious Chandler tradition extends far
back into history, since the first of the family made a name for himself as a war hero
on the Canopian front during the Star League’s Reunification War.
But today, like his father before him, John is no soldier. Indeed, he has never even
seen a day of combat in his life on his peaceful agrarian idyll in the foothills of
Skorbell on Skat. His medals, lovingly preserved in display cases lining his wall, are
actually those earned by generations before his father. The famous Chandlers of
Tiber, one of the Free Worlds League’s mighty MechWarrior families, are now
history. But they are not alone.
Like thousands of others throughout the Inner Sphere, the Chandlers are the remains
of a social class of pseudo-nobility that has been on a steady decline since the middle
of the last century. Once, the MechWarrior families were more common, held in a
regard that verged on awe as the centuries of the Succession Wars dragged on.
MechWarriors, once soldiers in an army, having proven their worth to their lords,
earned the personal ownership of their BattleMechs. As ’Mech manufacturing slowed,
these machines became heirlooms, and those who upheld the standards of their lords
in battle came to earn land holds and patents of nobility themselves, in payment for
their dedication, after generations of service.
Thus were born the MechWarrior families of old—a new breed of knights, baronets,
and other new nobility, whose power centered on the BattleMechs that were their
birthright. Dispossession, the loss of these avatars of war, was their ultimate bane,
but many of them could command armies of their own, ruling warriors who served as
vassals and squires.
The new technology that suddenly became available in the 3030s began the decline of
these families. Improved production made ’Mechs less rare, and more powerful
weapons made them easier to kill. The Clan invasion shattered dozens of the ancient
MechWarrior families, as did the FedCom Civil War, and the Jihad that soon followed.
Increasingly, the MechWarriors who came to the field were soldiers again, piloting a
machine that had not been handed down through the generations, but merely assigned
by the House that built it. They had no patents of nobility, they were not knights, but
part of a rank and file army. But though the cataclysmic wars of the latter 31st
century dwindled their numbers, ironically enough, it would be peace that truly sent
the MechWarrior families on the path toward extinction.
“My grandfather had enough of war, I suppose,” says Chandler, indicating a
holograph of Morten Chandler, standing before his prized Trebuchet, a 50-ton ’Mech
that survived more than eight generations of Chandler MechWarriors. “He followed
Stone, thanks to Duchess [Alys Rousset-]Marik, wanted to become a farmer, and
sold off Ol’ Mandy [the Trebuchet].”
Devlin Stone’s Military Material Redemption Program demilitarized many of the
MechWarrior families, as well as mercenaries and other private ’Mech owners by
offering something the old title-based system did not: security. Under the older
system, MechWarrior families looking to retain their status needed not only to keep
their machines, but also to continue on in service to their liege lords. Dispossession
thus not only represented the loss of the machine, but of the titles, and the landholds
that often came along with it. Conversely, a warrior could also become dispossessed
for any act of defiance against the liege lord, resulting in all of the same
consequences, in a process often referred to as entailment. Thus, MechWarrior
families had to maintain an active warrior in every generation, or be willing to
surrender their lands and their futures to someone more worthy.
The MMRP offer, on the other hand, offered full citizenship, wealth, and land—if not
a noble title—for those willing to part with their tools of war, all without a
corresponding requirement of ongoing military service to a liege lord. The warriors
could at last settle down, raise their families, and tend to their own needs.
“Yes, it was a good trade,” says Chandler, even after admitting he sometimes
wonders what the life of the MechWarrior might have been like. “Sometimes, a man
has to know his limitations. What good is all the finery and the status of being a
MechWarrior knight, after all, if you’re always being asked to risk it all for some
politician somewhere?”
Not every MechWarrior family was so willingly dispossessed, however. For a time,
organizations of MechWarrior families formed, attempting to hold onto their power,
or influence the Great Houses. Many of these even disbanded, however, after the rise
of The Republic, as public sentiment turned more and more against the warrior-
centric system in the post-Jihad era, and decommissioning programs like the MMRP
gained momentum. Today, fewer true MechWarrior families remain than the legions
of old. Of those that are left, such as the Great Houses of Steiner, Kurita, Davion, and
Liao, or the smaller Houses like the Centrellas, Sandovals, Tormarks, and Campbells,
are perhaps the heartiest of this old guard. Yet they are not alone. Though the
numbers of families are shrinking, joining their ranks have been such “upstart”
families as the Knights of the Sphere. The warriors among the Knights form a new
breed of titled MechWarriors in their ownership of their machines (a mark of The
Republic’s trust), and their extended families may thus benefit from the same stature
as such forebears.
But are the MechWarrior families a dying breed, or are there signs of a recovery close
at hand? Some experts believe that the recent rise in inter-factional fighting throughout
The Republic may yet reverse the decline of the MechWarrior families, should more
MechWarriors become knighted to address the crisis, while others struggle to stake
their own claims. Though many in the Inner Sphere may still hold to the belief that the
MechWarrior family belongs in our more warlike past, the experts claim that
extinction of the MechWarrior families is most unlikely.
| November 3, 3133 |
