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Draconis Combine
Current Ambassador: Tomoe Katsuie
This information was last updated on the: 13th of July, 2019
Core Information:

     Capital: Imperial City, Luthien
     Faction Leader: Coordinator Hohiro Kurita
     Military Leader: Gunji-no-Kanrei Masayoshi Kitakyusho
     Intelligence Leader: Mr. Ninyu Kerai-Indrahar
     Approximate BattleMech Regiment Strength: 122 (106 DCMS, 6 Mercenary, 11 Nova Cat)
     Mercenaries Currently Under Employ: Crater-Cobras, Dragon's Breath, Killer Bees, Northwind Highlanders: 1st Kearny Highlanders, The Black Outlaws

Major Sub Regions Core Information:

     Region Name: Dieron Military District
     Capital: Dieron
     Commander: Tai-shu Isoroku Kurita
     Sub-Commander: Tai-sho Jasmine Goshentara
     Percentage of total Faction Military Strength: 15%

     Region Name: Benjamin Military District
     Capital: Benjamin
     Commander: Tai-shu Lee Heyama
     Sub-Commander: Tai-sho Prudencio Kulmala
     Percentage of total Faction Military Strength: 35%

     Region Name: Pesht Military District
     Capital: Pesht
     Commander: Tai-shu Kiyomori Minamoto
     Sub-Commander: Tai-sho Kelly Dasoshigi
     Percentage of total Faction Military Strength: 30%

     Region Name: Galedon Military District
     Capital: Galedon
     Commander: Tai-shu Li Dok To
     Sub-Commander: Tai-sho Clarence Homashitsu
     Percentage of total Faction Military Strength: 20%

System Information Pages:

Al Na'ir, Almunge, Alrakis, Altair, Alya, An Ting, Arkab, Ascella, Ashio, Asta, Athenry, Atria, Avon, Bangor, Barlow's End, Benet III, Benjamin, Bjarred, Breed, Cassias, Cebalrai, Courchevel, Deneb Algedi, Dieron, Dobson, Dromini, Eltanin, Emporia, Fomalhaut, Franklin, Galatia III, Galtor, Hachiman, Imbros, Jeanette, Kazanka, Kervil, Kessel, Kiamba, Kiesen, Ko, Konstance, Kuzuu, Lambrecht, Land's End, Lucerne, Luthien, Lyons, Mara, Marduk, McGehee, Meinacos, Minakuchi, Mirach, Misery, Moore, Murchison, Nashira, New Samarkand, Niles, Nirasaki, Pesht, Pike, Polcenigo, Port Arthur, Proserpina, Rigil Kentarus, Ryde, Saffel, Schuyler, Skondia, Staplefeld, Sternwerde, Styx, Tabayama, Tarazed, Toffen, Tsukude, Udibi, Unity, Vega, Virentofta, Wapakoneta, Wolcott, Yorii

BTM Timeline Events:

11th of February, 3070
Theodore Kurita dies, Hohiro Kurita becomes Coordinator of the Draconis Combine.

28th of May, 3073
Crimson Legion mercenary unit is forced to retreat from the Najha system in the Draconis Combine after an attack by crusader elements of Clan Ghost Bear. The system is annexed to the Clan.

18th of January, 3075
Ambassador Kohei Gaikoukan is assigned to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

18th of December, 3075 to the 17th of February, 3076
The Hellstorm Hussars mercenary unit reinforced the SLDF's 28th Division on Dehgolan just in time for another Ghost Bear offensive but after heavy combat over many weeks and a heavy Draconis Combine reinforcement they are able to hold the planet but are forced to surrender the system to the new Rasalhague Dominion under instruction from the Star League.

24th of October, 3076
The Draconis Combine system of Marduk is eventually ceded to the Federated Suns after a meat grinding effort of both sides that also involved the Shadow Lancers and the Death's Guard mercenary units.

26th of April, 3077
The Draconis Combine world of Marduk is conquered by the Federated Suns.

1st of June, 3077
Draconis Combine forces eventually retreat from Quentin after a concentrated campaign by the Restless Souls Mercenary Unit for the Federated Suns.

2nd of August, 3077
Kohei Gaikoukan resigns as the Ambassador to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

13th of August, 3077
Ambassador Mariko Takeda is assigned to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

3rd of December, 3077
Mariko Takeda resigns as Ambassador to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

9th of March, 3078
Gregor Rosse rises to the rank of saKhan of the Nova Cats with the support of a growing movement. The promotion ignores SLDF regulations and the 4th Army is sanctioned by the Triumvirate but little is done beyond tough words. Khan Kothinur Gritas is determined by SLDF policy critics to be a useless leader that has been corrupted by wealth and political power within the Draconis Combine.

21st of June, 3078
Ambassador Tenkai Mitsuhide is assigned to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

9th of October, 3079
Tensions between the Star League and Draconis Combine worsen when skirmishes between opposing supporters begin to battle all over the world of Yorii after SL Ministry of Trade & Resources abuses are made public.

17th of November, 3079
The Rasalhague Dominion world of Toffen was conquered by the Akki Tsubasa Mercenary Unit under the the employ of the Draconis Combine

2nd of December, 3079
Wide spread starvations and deep rooted corruption on Altair provoke a strong response from the Star League Senate and force the hand of the Ministry of Health into offering various mercenary contracts to investigate and possibly apprehend the responsible parties. Many criticize the SLDF for not acting to take Altair as it is legally a SL Territory but many in the Draconis Combine become incensed at the idea of even mercenaries interferring.

1st of July, 3080
Mitsuhide Tenkai resigns as Ambassador to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

9th of July, 3080
Ambassador Hejito Momoguchi is assigned to the DMM from the Draconis Combine.

12th of July, 3080
The Star League General Senate heavily debates the validity of the membership of the Draconis Combine within the Star League and dozens of Senators use rhetoric that incites anti-Star League sentiment within Draconis Combine.

27th of July, 3080
Coordinator Hohiro Kurita's secret proposal for the SLDF to instigate an Operation Lorelai type campaign against the Rasalhague Dominion is leaked to the media and damages relations further between the Draconis Combine and the Star League.

25th of August, 3080 to the 30th of September, 3080
saKhan Gregor Rosse uses the recent Marduk Incident to call for the 4th Army to break away from the Star League and support Draconis Combine sovereignty. Khan Kothinur Gritas takes the 20th and 21st Divisions to Kanowit to confront Rosse's Nova Cat Lancers and destroy the defection. Once on planet the 21st Division defects to Rosse and they defeat the 20th Division and Khan Kothinur Gritas is slain in battle.

13th of October, 3080
After the Kanowit battle in the Draconis Combine, the SLDF Triumvirate notifies the General Senate and the Inner Sphere that the 4th Army is a rogue army and recommends that all loyal units leave Draconis Combine space and let the DCMS deal with the self-proclaimed Khan Gregor Rosse.

26th of November, 3080
The Draconis Combine decides to include the SLDF 4th Army composed of Clan Nova Cat units into the defense of the realm and expels all Star League personnel from the Draconis Combine and withdrawls most of their non-essential people from Terra in protest of the anti-DC bias held within the Star League.

10th of December, 3080
Yorii and Asta are abandoned by the Star League in appeasement to the Draconis Combine to avoid conflict and promote officials to return to the Star League Accords. Many other realms believe this is a weak dangerous stance and that the Draconis Combine is deserving of their isolation.

12th of August, 3081
Tenkai Mitsuhide resigns from his post as the Draconis Combine Ambassador

6th of November, 3081
The Draconis Combine have garrisoned the periphery world of Enif and restored order after riots.

20th of December, 3081
In a suprise move that spells the beginning of another major intergalactic war, ten systems of the Lyran Alliance and Federated Suns bordering the Draconis Combine have been conquered in well coordinated attacks between the traitorous SLDF 4th Army, the DCMS, Ghost Corps, Nationalist Militia's, the ISF and anti-Star League local sympathisers. So begins the next great war.

28th of February, 3082
During a televised ceremony at the Imperial Palace on Luthien in the Draconis Combine, Coordinator Hohiro Kurita II conveys the Order of the Ronin Star on two of its most distinguished mercenary unit commanders: Commander Marcus Naslund of the Akki-Tsubasa and Legatus Viktor-Agrippa Isidore Kreiger of the Legio Invictus.

27th of April, 3082
The 1st Republican Guard Regiment combined with Veens Irregulars Mercenary Unit recapture Emporia for the Federated Suns from the Draconis Combine.

10th of May, 3082
In yet a second wave ten more systems of the Lyran Alliance and Federated Suns bordering the Draconis Combine have been conquered between the traitorous SLDF 4th Army, the DCMS, Ghost Corps, Nationalist Militia's, the ISF and anti-Star League local sympathisers

5th of July, 3082
Jyoji Kobayashi is sworn in to a post of the Draconis Combine Ambassador

31st of July, 3082
An heir to the Draconis Combine throne is born: Vincent Kurita. Lady Pearl Toshiro - Vincent's mother and wife to Coordinator Hohiro Kurita II - tragically dies during childbirth. A day of mourning is proclaimed throughout the realm.

12th of August, 3082
The Federated Suns Launch Counteroffensive dub Operation: 'Yellow Bird', at the Draconis Combine. The have simoultaneouesly targeted both salients through the Draconis March with four ground regiments and a WarShip squadron each.

5th of September, 3082
The Lyran Alliance launced Operation: Stalingrad aimed at their reconquest of worlds lost to the Draconis Combine in the first half of this year. They have launched simoultaneous Counter-Assaults at the Kuritan Forces on Marfik, Eagelsham, Phalan, and Accrington.

12th of September, 3082
A month to the day the Federated Suns have successfully liberated Mallory's World and Le Blanc from the Draconis Combine with attacks from 3rd Davion Guard RCT and the 7th Crucis Lancers RCT, respectively.

17th of September, 3082
Ambassador Hejito Momoguchi tendered his resignation as DMM Faction Ambassador for the Draconis Combine

7th of November, 3082
The newly renamed Raven Legion has successfully liberated the former world of the Federated Suns Lucerne from the Draconis Combine.

14th of December, 3082
While in the employ of the Federated Suns, the Restless Souls Mercenary Brigade liberated a besieged Mara from the Draconis Combine

1st of January, 3083
While more than fifty worlds changed hands more than a score of them where within the borders of the Draconis Combine. And while the Dragon was being filleted it still did not stop the over all might of House Kurita, who still managed to aquire ten more world along the Davion and Steiner Borders. The War rages on.

23rd of February, 3083
The 7th Crucis Lancers Regimental Combat Team reinforced by the 4th Federated Suns Lancers and the Mercenary Unit, the Restless Souls, and attendant WarShip Fleet engaged and successfully liberated the besieged Federated Suns planet of Dobson from the Draconis Combine.

22nd of March, 3083
Lucerne] - After months of combat operations, the Draconis Combine's forces on Lucerne were at long last pinned down in their mountain refuge and overrun by the Raven Legion Mercenary Unit in the employ of the Federated Suns. Lucerne is now firmly in the hands of House Davion.

31st of March, 3083
The first quarter of this year saw ruthless acts of violence committed by House Kurita. There has been sabotage and terror in the very heart of the realms targeted by the Draconis Combine. In unmitigated acts, neither sanctioned by the Star League nor the Ares convention, DEST teams have been sent to the capitol worlds of Tharkad of the Lyran Alliance, New Avalon of the Federated Suns, and Alshain of the Rasalhague Dominion with the express purpose of sabotaging Fusion Plants near the Realm’s capitol’s creating rather large nuclear explosion and blankets of radiation to slowly wipe out their enemies. These atrocities have de-moralize the victims and aided in blanketing each states 4C complexes with enough radiation so as to disable their HPGs preventing them from communicating with their forces constantly engaged on the front with their aggressor the Draconis Combine. It appears that other Special Forces are taking their lead from the Dragon and are taking advantage of these three Realm’s weaknesses by launching their own attacks all along their border worlds. They have included, although not limited, to assassinations, bombings, and the sabotaging of fusion power plants to explode. Worlds of note along the Rasalhague Dominion shard border are Radstadt, Trondheim, and Tukayyid. Along the Lyran Alliance - Skye, Bolan, Cavanaugh II, Timbuktu, Coventry, and Melissia. Along the Federated Suns borders it has been the worlds of Valexa, Alcyone, Sirdar, Bromhead, Brockway, and Perdition. This is truly the beginning of the Fifth Succession War as the Inner Sphere deteriorates into terror and chaos.

15th of July, 3083 to the 24th of July, 3083
15-24 July 3083 - Draconis Combine Admiralty recommissions captured Smoke Jaguar Warships (once believed mothballed or scrapped) with Clan Diamond Shark assistance. Fredasa-class corvettes Dragon's Triumph and Phoenix Flight complete stores and deploy to the Combine-Snow Raven border. Alkalurops, Accrington, Murchison and Galatia III fall to the Combine in its latest attack wave. The key factory world of Marduk is conquered with overwhelming Warship support.

22nd of July, 3083
The Draconis Combine continues to conquer worlds even with the entire weight of the collective Inner Sphere arrayed against it. House Kurita has captured three more worlds from the Federated Suns, Murchinson, Galatia III, Marduk. Two worlds from the Lyran Alliance Alkalurops and Accrington. And Rockland from the Rasalhague Dominion

20th of August, 3083
20 August 3083 - The Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery steps up operations, retaking Rockland from the Rasalhague Dominion.

25th of October, 3083
The Draconis Combine conquers the key Lyran system Alphecca.

2nd of December, 3083
Mysterious locked-room murder of Dr. Tomonaga Ijiro on Terra popularises Ijiro-Knight Report, which makes several controversial claims regarding the motives of the Draconis Combine leadership.

1st of January, 3084
Draconis Combine task groups attack Dehgolan and Grumium with overwhelming force, opposed fiercely by Dominion defenders comprising Ghost Bear Touman and Kungsarme troops. The fighting lasts months before Combine forces establish effective control over the two systems.

24th of July, 3084
Loyal SLDF peacekeepers under the Deputy Director Constance Kavazashvili from the Department of Intelligence & Strategy are sent to the border region between the Federated Suns and Draconis Combine which causes a lull in the fighting as the DCMS can no longer pursue such an aggressive stance with new potentially hostile regiments in the region.

10th of August, 3084
The Mercenary Brigade, The Restless Souls have 'acquired' full fledge Mako-Class Corvette WarShip dubbed the Hyperion. It is unclear whether it is a reconstituted previously thought to be scuttled WarShip or fresh off the assembly lines WarShip from the Bolson Shipyards in the Lyran Alliance. It will be a welcomed addition to the Federated Suns arsenal in defense of the Restless Souls' LandHold Quentin on the Draconis Combine-Federated Suns Border.

13th of August, 3084
Following a series of raids by both sides which stall large-scale offensive actions, Phalan, Sakhalin and Eaglesham are annexed as Draconis Combine forces shift focus from the Federated Suns front to the Lyran Alliance border.

9th of October, 3084
Looking to follow up on the successful and tenuous unofficial truce caused by the arrival of peacekeepers on the Federated Suns and Draconis Combine border, SLDF peacekeepers roll into camps along the Lyran Alliance and Draconis Combine front line with only initial success as cross-border raiding continues to take place by years end.

20th of January, 3085 to the 31st of March, 3085
Dateline Saffel - 4 10th - Reports confirm that units of the Black Stars Mercenary Collective have left Saffel after completing what amounted to a blitz search and destroy mission. Elements of the Sharp Shooters, Winter Hunters and the newly established 'Order of Kailen' took part in operations centering on hunting down the Tracer Trackers mercenary unit. The Trackers were accused by the Star League of defaulting on a contract and theft of military equipment.*The DCMS reports the fighting was costly for both sides. In a press release, they stated the Black Stars units touched down in dense Sambi Forests on Sophrati. They engaged the Trackers in the snowy forests and destroyed them in an elaborate ambush. Tracer Tracker commander Jared Kjorn, was confirmed killed in action this morning. Denise Wojick, the units Executive officer, is still listed as missing. Experts agree however, that after more than a week in the forests, her survival is unlikely.*Though initially content to sit out the fighting, DCMS spokesman Alan Kotuora stated that the "Situation had changed and the Black Stars became a threat to the safety of Saffel." Kotoura was unwilling to comment on rumors of Draconis Combine engagements with the Black Stars. They also refuse to comment on a supposed search and rescue mission performed by the Black Stars as the mercenaries began a sudden withdrawal, seemingly in the face of Draconis forces. The Black Stars have thus far been unavailable for comment.

27th of January, 3085 to the 27th of March, 3085
News across the star league administrated zones reports that Epsilon Indi was recently infiltrated by Draconis Combine forces. The forces were supported by the mercenary unit the 8th Independent Hussars. The Hussars have been spotted in the Draconis Combine previously and should come as no surprise to see them allying themselves with the Draconis Combine forces. Star League officials were alerted to the arrival of the Dracs and their allies by an informant who the PR department refuse to name for so called legal reasons. Shortly after they discovered the infiltrators, war erupted across the capital city as the star league planetary defense force looked to tackle them before they could achieve whatever act of terrorism they intended to do. The battle ended up spreading into the nuclear waste of the planet and saw damage being done on either side. However reports are that the defense force in particular suffered crippling losses, with the Hussars having left the planet shortly after. No one knows what the hussars and Dracs have achieved in the nuclear wastelands but it has many an expert wondering.

6th of May, 3085
An initial emergency meeting of the Star League Senate fails to elect a new Presidential-Senator with the Federated Suns representatives walking out on the summit due to the SLDF refusing to take further action against the Draconis Combine who many believe was behind the assassinations.

11th of May, 3085
In a possible manipulation by Chancellor Sun-Tzu Liao a motion to remove the SLDF peacekeepers from the Capellan Confederation and Federated Suns border by Tancred Sandoval fails with the new Presidential-Senator instead pledging to send the 2nd Division as further support. A subsequent bid for more peacekeepers from the Clan front to aid the peacekeeping mission along the Draconis Combine and Federated Suns border by Tancred is likewise shot down by similar political maneuvering. As a result Tancred Sandoval formally withdraws the Federated Suns from the Star League. Parts of the 6th Army defect to the Federated Suns two weeks later.

25th of September, 3085
Jyoji Kobayashi officially tenders his resignation from the MRBC position of Draconis Combine Ambassador

4th of January, 3086
It was one year ago that Peter Steiner-Davion and his children Melissa and Marcus, fell to an assassin in the Throne Room on Tharkad. For nearly a year the people of the Lyran Alliance have grieved with his widow, Duchess Hermione Aten of Skye. A nation in the mourning has just begun to collect itself. Adam Steiner’s ascension to the Tharkad throne soothed many who saw him as the right man at the right time, and reduced fears of some kind of internal strife or even Civil War. At the same time, the hunt for the architects of the tragedy is on-going. Although numerous experts have pointed fingers at the Draconis Combine, more recent accumulated evidence has pointed at the Brotherhood of Cincinnatus. LOKI and other LIC organizations have begun to target the organization with a sense of grim determination. Anyone found to be explicitly aware of the intended assassination, or taken part in it has become a target of an ongoing and lethal manhunt. Much of that activity has centered around Gacrux, a stronghold of the Brotherhood, and led to extensive purges of the Gacrux Freedom Theatre Militia. For much of the year, Duchess Hermione Aten remained on Tharkad, often appearing with Adam Steiner at public events and memorials. We have recently learned that after a year of mourning, she will return to her homeworld of Skye. The move appears timed with a growing sense that Skye is free from the threat of any imminent Draconis Combine invasion. The beloved Duchess’s return comes at a time of discontent in the Isle of Skye. The Duchess’s marriage and children were long perceived within the Isle of Skye as the fulfillment of Skye’s destiny to rise up and lead the Lyran Alliance. With that dream crushed and many worlds in the Isle of Skye suffering from devastation in the recent fighting with the Draconis Combine, many people in the Isle of Skye have reassumed their more rebellious spirit, finding fault with Archon Adam Steiner’s decisions at every turn and being openly critical of recent events (and the Alliance’s handling of them). As a direct result of this, LIC presence within the Isle of Skye has been intensified to levels not seen since before the FedCom Civil War.

7th of February, 3087
Lyran Alliance officials have confirmed that the Lyran Alliance is embarking on a massive civilian infrastructure and military reconstruction and build-up within the traditional boundaries of the Isle of Skye. The move comes after months of increasing hostility in Skye toward the Alliance government after many Skye worlds fell to the Draconis Combine and many others were ravaged in raids. The offensives put Skye itself within grabbing reach of the Combine, which sent the people of Skye into an uproar over the perceived failures of the Alliance government.

10th of February, 3087 to the 5th of April, 3087
After spending 2 years with a black mark on the Hussar name, They are hired by an old ally, to defend the planet of Schuyler against an Invasion from Clan Ghost Bear, who are looking to stop the Draconis Combine developing HarJel technology. But as the Hussars fight the enemies from without, enemies within the Draconis combine are perhaps an even bigger threat to the success of their mission, the return of the black dragon society is not something to be taken lightly.

10th of March, 3087
Today a senior officer in the Lyran Alliance Armed Forces confirmed reports that three new BattleMech regiments and a number of supporting units have been activated. The Tenth and Twelfth Donegal Guard RCTs and the 1st Lyran Regulars have officially returned to active duty. All three units were destroyed in the 3050 Clan Invasion prior to the Battle of Tukayyid The restoration of these units appears to be part of a large build-up and rebuilding of the LAAF following years of war on the Draconis Combine front, as well as on and off hostilities on the Clan front. Most recently, the Free Worlds League has launched a new offensive that the LAAF was hard-pressed to counter. The simultaneous unveiling of all three units, which had been formed and training in secret, came as little shock to many LAAF observers both inside the Lyran Alliance and beyond.

4th of April, 3087
Coordinator Hohiro Kurita has shocked the Inner Sphere by revealing that he has a family. The Coordinator presented his family to an assemblage of cultural and political leaders, including the Keeper of House Honor, Miyako Kurita, and Lady Mara Selencia, Abbess of the Order of Five Pillars. We now know that Hohiro was married to Lady Fiona Kurita in 3057 and that Fiona and Omi, Hohiro’s sister, were good friends. Hohiro has also revealed that he has two sons, Shinjiro and Vincent. Hohiro’s sons Shinjiro and Vincent had been using a cover surname, that of a prominent Samurai family their entire lives and with the secret permission of that family. Shinjiro Kurita, age 30 is a mechwarrior in the 1st Sword of Light and is not married. Vincent Kurita, age 25, married Lady Ramiko Nishimura on Kirei Na Niwa on the 12th of May, 3081. Vincent remains in the DCMS but in more recent years has served primarily in non-combat Staff positions. The news has been met with celebration across the Draconis Combine.

16th of June, 3087 to the 24th of August, 3087
Date line 8 30 3087 Press Release - ComStar has announced that their newly created 394th division The White Lions has recently finished training and is due to be rotated out to the Draconis Combine sector. Their training covered multiple areas of focus tailored to their deployment zone, specifically including pirate hunting. To achieve the level of training needed under the truncated time table the Black Stars sub unit The Bloody Marauders were brought in. Their level of knowledge and experience were an important part of the selection process. Their extremely aggressive training schedule and more importantly their ability to maintain that schedule and meet all of the key deliverables was what made this training a success.

15th of January, 3088
The fall of the Star League had an impact on the Draconis Combine that the Coordinator did not expect. Many former Star League warriors of Combine origin are returning home. They bring with them an entire generation’s ideals, fighting experience, and a lack of fanatical loyalty to the Coordinator. Their skills, quickly prized by a DCMS desperate to rebuild, are turned on the Dragon when a large swath of the Benjamin Military District, including the District capital and its leadership, attempt to secede from the Combine…with the assistance of many former Star League personnel, some DCMS units and several respected mercenary commands ‘loaned’ from other Great Houses that enjoy seeing the Dragon wounded from within. Bringing the errant District to heel will pit Samurai against Samurai, brother against brother, and test the true measure of loyalty for many in what is quickly dubbed the “War of Benjamin”.

20th of October, 3088
The Growling Bears Trinary and 12th PGC successfully held the Rasalhague Dominion world of Last Frontier in the face of an invasion by the 8th Sword of Light and supporting regiments from the Draconis Combiner. After a month and a half of fighting, the 19th Phalanx arrived to reinforce the 12th and Growling Bears, prompting the 8th to withdraw. Fighting was very intense and scattered across the world. The capital city of Arlington has been partially destroyed by Combine Artillery. The Watch estimates suggest the Combine forces took fifty percent losses in machines and forty-two percent losses in personnel. The Growling Bears will be staying on world in the immediate future to assist in rebuilding.

12th of December, 3088
Jeannie Sherwood, Goddard Press (AFP) - [Terra] - The Draconis Combine's House Kurita loses a JumpShip - Reports are still filtering in about the disappearance of DCS Suzaku, a Chimeisho-class JumpShip under the command of Dai-i Shichiro Tanaka, which was due to arrive at the Small World AFFS recharge station while flying a flag of neutrality for the Mercenary Review and Bonding Commission, based on Outreach. Details as they develop.

13th of December, 3088
Mystery Solved, ‘All a misunderstanding’, claims respected naval officer – IBS – All the Truth you Need – [Graham IV] – “I felt my heart leap into my throat,” says 38-year JumpShip veteran Draconis Combine Dai-I Tanaka, commanding officer of the DCS Suzaku. “Of course, I knew that not even a dirty mercenary would try something as mad as to attack a vessel they were attached to in one of the most populous areas of known space, no less! It was simply Captain Castle’s way of letting me know that the convoy’s destination had unexpectedly changed. Despite what people say, no one was hurt and no damage was done – how could there have been? No one ‘activated weapons’ or even as much as reached for one!” Dai-I Tanaka has communicated his desire to transfer to the quartermaster command, where he may spend more time with his family, and the DCS Suzaku has been dispatched to Proserpina for re-certification and retrofit.

21st of December, 3088
Tomoe Katsuie is 'officially' sworn into the office of Draconis Combine Ambassador for the MRBC; however, with her predecessor having vacated the office almost four years ago, she does not pick up the reigns until the 22nd of February, 3089.

9th of January, 3089
With the incoming New Year the following changes have occurred around the Inner Sphere. The recognition of the Official Holdings of Clan Rift Tiger and Clan Diamond Shark. The Draconis Combine gained Sabik, Dalkeit, and Skondia from the Lyran Alliance The Confederated Magistry gained Bell, Safe Port, and Hadnall from the Federated Suns. The Free Worlds League gained Connaught, Bordon, Dieudonne, and Dubhe from the Lyran Alliance The Lyran Alliance gained Marfik, Ryde, Alphecca, and Lyons from the Draconis Combine. Wyatt, Rahne, and New Kyoto from the Free Worlds League The Federated Suns gained Woodstock and Yangtze from the Confederated Magistry. Hazelhurst, Inner End, Sevon, and Mitchella from the Outworlds Alliance. The Taurian Concordant gained Caldwell from the Federated Suns

3rd of February, 3089
Elements of the Akki Tsubasa infiltrated the Federated Suns held world of Colia in the employ of the Draconis Combine to escort in a shipment of supplies and weapons to a group of roughly 120 DCMS guerrilla fighters who have been behind enemy lines since the tail end of the Fifth Succession War. They have taken refuge in some of the highest mountains on Colia, a region known as the Gortho Mountain Range.

13th of February, 3089
On the Draconis Combine world of Misery, the Akki Tsubasa have engage in training exercises to help the Ryuken-ni indoctrinate their new members and as well Participated in ceremonies to honor the Battle of Misery. After the cermonies were concluded the mercenary unit Assisted in expeditions to recover the bodies of the fallen and relics from that battle.

24th of February, 3089
MERC-NET Dispatch; Item #2345346 [24 FEB 89] From: CAPT J. Reese, MUCO, TIMU To: All MRBC Rated Commands CC: TIMU Staff; ATMU Staff; Draconis Combine Mustard Soldiery [REDACTED]; Office of [REDACTED] "Begin transmission. By order of the mercenary unit commanding officer, as of 0800 GMT; 24 February 3089, Lieutenant (Senior Grade) Randal Steele is to stand relieved of his position as executive officer of The Irregulars Mercenary Unit. Mr. Steele shall at this time retain his rank and time in grade until such time as a full investigation of the activities of II Company can be mounted. He may retain command authority within the field until such time as the current contract his unit is engaged upon (CM-DC-06-03, Operation Autumn Blur), has concluded. At no time is Mr. Steele to conduct the affairs of The Irregulars in a strategic fashion until he has answered for and been cleared of the charge of dereliction of duty. End transmission."

11th of April, 3089
At the behest the USI MHB Lieutenant General Samuel Carter in the employ of ComStar, Veens Irregulars went through out the entire time in Draconis Combine space to the planet of Benjamin, the Major Kept his people on a short leash making sure no one did anything sketchy on any planet. Delivering the goods and heading home well gathering information on several planets of some of his old contacts. Making sure to meet new friends.

17th of June, 3089
DCMS Units On High Alert Amid Rumors of Clan Activity. The Draconis Combine Internal Security Force sources have indicated that several Kuritan Regiments in the Benjamin and Pesht military districts stationed near the mutual border with the Rasalhague Dominion have been put on high alert amidst reports of escalated communications and JumpShip activity in that realm and the nearby Clan Wolf occupation zone. Some of the rumors suggest the possibility of an offensive by Clan Wolf into Dominion territory, though one ISF official suggested this may be a ploy by Clan Watch operatives. "The Clans have become more savvy of late in the art of deception" the ISF official, who will remain anonymous, told us. "We believe they have learned from their interactions with Inner Sphere society of the past several decades, and this could be a lure for the Dragon. We are very wary." Tai-shu Petroff was unavailable for comment, but his office did confirm that DCMS assets in the districts are being put on alert and watching for any moves by the Dragon's Clan neighbors.

19th of October, 3089
Alshain Rasalhague Dominion - Major developments have been noted across the Rasalhague Dominion. Sources inside the Dominion report that several clusters have shifted duty stations and intense training exercises have been conducted on Alshain, Kempten and Spittal. Lead experts on the Dominion point to the recent attack by the Draconis Combine as the likely cause of these moves. "Never forget that the Rasalhague people only have so much say in their government," Doctor Joshua Martinez, Professor of Political Science, Tharkad University, stated. "The Ghost Bears still control the military in the region. The Combine has clearly not yet learned to leave sleeping bears lie. These moves are indicative of a retaliatory strike. Time will tell how serious the threat is." Though most analysts agree with Martinez, there is another viewpoint. "We get so caught up on the Clans as a threat to ourselves, we forget sometimes that they like to fight each other too," Dr. Vanessa Wren, Sanglamore University, said. "And the hatred between the Wolves and Bears is a thing of legend."

1st of January, 3090
As we begin a new year please take note of the following changes around the Inner Sphere. Lyran Alliance Gained from the old Chaos March Lipton. Gained from Free Worlds League: New Kyoto, Rahne, Wyatt. Loss to Free Worlds League: Connaught, Bordon, Dieudonne, Dubhe. Loss to ULTRA Zollikofen, Denebola. Draconis Combine Loss to ULTRA Rigil Kentarus, Fomalhaut, Yorii. Confederated Magistry (Capellan Confederation) Loss to ULTRA Acamar, Slocum, Azha, Alrescha, Tikonov. Federated Suns Loss to ULTRA Woodstock, Yangtze, Hamal, Bharat, Nopah, Kawich, Ruchbah, Ingress. Loss to Outworlds Alliance Mitchella, Sevon. Gained from the Confederated Magistry (Capellan Confederation) New Hessen.

23rd of January, 3090
The glory years of the Akki Tsubasa are still out of their reach. Since their return to the Mercenary hiring halls they continue to fail to achieve their mission objectives. Both projects planned by the Draconis Combine on Land's End have failed, The first was the construction of six surface to orbit capital missile launch sites. The second was the construction of Supply Depot Fifty Eight. Clan Snow Raven’s Watch Operatives must have compromise the ISF communication network because the Snow Ravens destroyed the clandestine Vengeance-class dropship with a supporting squadron of attack dropships while Snow Raven aerospace fighters continue to bomb and strafe both construction projects in light of the Akki Tsubasa as if they were not even present. It is a sad day on Outreach.

10th of March, 3090
With the Draconis Combine's invasion of Last Frontier currently in progress, the Warlord has taken steps to be prepared for any backlashes from Clan Ghost Bear that may occur. The important world of Schuyler is currently being garrisoned by the 6th Pesht Regulars, 6th An Ting Legion, and the Black Outlaws have already been hired to supplement these forces. However, the Warlord is still seeking additional troops to supplement these forces and additional mercenaries will be hired. A command with a resume that includes combat experience and can field at minimum a company of BattleMechs is required. Completion of the duration of the contract will likely lead to further employment opportunities. Eligible MRBC-sponsored mercenary units are encourage to contact the Kuritan Ambasssador's office for inquiries or contract bids.

1st of January, 3092
Captain-General Agatha Rousset-Marik and her advisors saw the creation of an independent Tikonov Free Republic as a win for them, as it would serve as the host for a spread of the Covenant, and would serve as an indirect way to weaken the other Great Houses and deny them key worlds and the support of people in that region, particularly Tikonov nationalists who have traditionally been loyal to the Capellans or Davions. Eventually ULTRA built up its own army, largely paid for by the FWL and operating alongside the FWLM but it was not part of the FWLM. ULTRA was also the primary outlet for Agatha’s ambitions for a while, using ULTRA as a pretext for overt and covert military operations. It resulted in a military campaign in which the Inner Sphere began to see what kind of leader Agatha was, the aggressive dangerous kind, full of revolutionary ideas in her head, she wasn’t content with the status quo. The very existence of ULTRA and Agatha’s support for it has become a source of political fodder between the Great Houses. This created lots of political angles to act/react to and at least a few mercenary contracts. In the final days of 3089 evidence started to pile up that ULRA existed, what it is, and that it was building a military with the Free Worlds League’s help. The Great Houses started to take stock of the situation, trying to gather intelligence and make plans. This set off alarm bells across the Inner Sphere as the former Tikonov Free Republic worlds include Chaos March worlds, Confederated Magistracy worlds, Lyran Alliance Worlds, Draconis Combine Worlds and even Federated Suns worlds. ULTRA made appearances in several merc contracts in the Old Chaos March/New ULTRA region. During the Fifth Succession War old-fashioned hatreds were reignited as traditional Great House enemies smacked each other around much like they had done for hundreds of years. There is another new militant faction in the heart of the Inner Sphere, ULTRA. The Liberty Holds government is a "Good guy" faction, white knights, inheritors of the Star League's idealism. By comparison ULTRA sought to be a power player on the Inner Sphere stage, one that was backed by an aggressive leader and all her resources. Its very existence has shaken up the dynamics of the Inner Sphere. Agatha Rousset-Marik is a villain. In the course of her career and life, she has been our Napoleon. She has gone after everybody, no one is safe. All the Great Houses find themselves a target of her ambitions, and she in turn is vilified by all and eventually attracted the wrath of all. In the shorter term, ULTRA was the first big move that she made, the first evidence that Agatha may be a big threat to the Inner Sphere. Agatha Marik is a modern day Napoleon. She is a revolutionary at heart, someone who wants to upset the status quo and not play the normal game. She is the cause of one or more wars, some small, some eventually very big. The first one of note involved ULTRA. She continues to pushes on with her agenda. For her ULTRA, and other pretexts for conquest are exactly that, a pretext, an excuse to attack while maintaining the appearance of being a good leader to her own people. The Age of Agatha is upon us.

1st of November, 3092
The Razan's Ronins employed in the Corporate Sector by Hejito Momoguchi, CEO of Mitsuhide Holdings of the Draconis Combine, who represents a Triumvirate, SUCCESSFULLY complete a Planetary Assault in which the Ronins eliminate Free World League Demichev Division resistance on Saffel, Yorii, Asta, and Altair.

24th of November, 3092
On Diversionary Raid #DC-DR-06-01 for the Draconis Combine on Styx against ULTRA and/or Free Worlds League Military the Aura Wings FAILED to fool the enemy into thinking that the invasion was real and only caused minimal damage. DCPS Liaison Tomoe Katsuie was disappointed with their performance.

15th of February, 3093
In a stunning reversal of events the Draconis Combine's Tai-sho Prudencio Kulmala employed the Aura Wings, who SUCCESSFULLY secured the Marduk system in a Planetary Assault, # FS-PA-06-05, forcing the 5th Crucis Lancers Militia into retreat while destroy targets of opportunity with the exception of Norse BattleMech Works.

11th of June, 3093
The Draconis Combine Professional Soldiery Liaison Officer, Sho-sa Emanuel Parker, hired the Razan's Ronins to ensure the 15th Dieron Regulars and 24th Dieron Regulars do not get involved in the uprising on Skondia of the 'Free Skondia Mutineers' on MRBC Riot Duty contract # DC-RD-06-02 while SUCCESSFULLY crushing the resistance and pacifying Skondia's population and capturing the resistance leaders, to be turned over to local law enforcement.

18th of December, 3093
It is 'Rumored' that Zink Finley of the Pirate Band, Finley's Crew, and his officers were victims of a SUCCESSFUL Assassination #DC-AS-04-01 by Chaos Incorporated on orders from an officer in the Draconis Combine Professional Soldiery. This rumor has not been confirmed by the ISF.

3rd of March, 3094
The Draconis Combine's fiercely loyal Razans Ronins Mercenary Command undertook a suicide mission to the planet Dieron in the form of a Guerrilla Warfare Contract MRBC # DC-GW-04-01 and SUCCESSFULLY gathered intel on the 15th ULTRA Luczenko Battalion's Assets, strengths, and positions, found and destroyed priority FWL targets, harassed the 15th's supply lines, troop movements and communications networks and assisted the local resistance cells loyal to House Kurita.

1st of June, 3094
The Draconis Combine launched a preemptive strike on the Free Worlds League held planet of Telos IV aimed at disabling the orbital defense system until the invasion force, Tai-sa Elizabeth Carrols and the 15th Dieron Regulars, had reached the planet's surface. Objective Raid # FW-OR-02-04 was SUCCESSFULLY pulled off by Razan's Ronins and to boot the unit was able to collect valuable intel and destroy targets of opportunity in advance of the 15th Dieron Regulars invasion of an ULTRA held world.

1st of August, 3094
The Razan's Ronins SUCCESSFULLY snatch Telos IV from the Free Worlds League and ULTRA'S iron hold, returning it back to the Draconis Combine fold on MRBC Planetary Assault contract # FW-PA-02-01 by aiding Tai-sa Elizabeth Carrols and her 15th Dieron Regulars.

1st of April, 3095
An ad-hoc Battalion from the Razan's Ronins Regiment travel Spinward to the border of the Pehst Military District of the Draconis Combine and SUCCESSFULLY engage the Ebon Raptor Band of Pirates on Bjarred in MRBC Pirate Hunting Contract # DC-PH-04-03 with Land-Air-Mechs, LAMS, under the watchful eye of Tai-sa Bernice Johnsson, CO 7th Pesht Regulars.

22nd of May, 3095
Even though the Chaos Incorporated were forced to withdraw from the Virentofta Recon Raid Contract # DC-RR-06-02 according to the Draconis Combine's PSL Officer the operation was largely a SUCCESS due to CI determining the Identity of the 'pirates', as being elements of Clan Ghost Bear.

29th of May, 3095
The Jackrabbits From Hell have completed contract DC-SD-02-03 for the Draconis Combine, discovering that units from the Ghost Bears were raiding the planet of Schuyler in the Draconis Combine.

25th of July, 3095
The Draconis Combine Professional Soldiery has assigned Liaison Officer, Tai-i Alexei Nikiforov, from the Pesht Military District to the Jackrabbits From Hell on Security Duty Contract # DC-SD-02-03 in the Schuyler system in which the JFH SUCCESSFULLY cooperate in a joint operation with the local Planetary Defense Force and planetary government to investigate the elevated Pirate raiding activity insystem.

15th of August, 3095
Ordered by Star Colonel Erikk Tseng of the Rasalhague Dominion, Star Colonel Cade MacKenzie’s 12th Bear Guards (Growling Bears) SUCCESSFULLY engaged in Planetary Assault contract # DC-PA-04-04 against the First Schuyler Guard on the Draconis Combine world of Schuyler forcing the enemy to escape off world.

8th of September, 3095
The Jackrabbits from Hell MU FAILED to Damage a military target on Recon Raid Contract # RD-RR-06-02 on the Rasalhague Dominion world of Orestes while in the employ of DCPS Liaison Tai-i Alexei Nikiforov of the Draconis Combine as their unit was destroyed by waiting Dominion Forces.

13th of November, 3095
The Chaos Incorporated MU was contracted by the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery's DCPS Liaison Katsuie Tomoe, to return to the planet of Virentofta, in the Bjarred Prefecture, Pesht Military District, which had recently been seized by Clan Snow Ravens 1st Raven Phalanx, and SUCCESSFULLY recapture a flotilla of DropShips on MRBC Extraction Contract # DC-EX-06-02

25th of November, 3095
The Rasalhague Dominion's Ghost Bears landed on the Draconis Combine world of Hanover on Planetary Assault contract # DC-PA-04-05 SUCCESSFULLY securing the port city of Cologne and protecting Wexler against the 1st Genyosha.

1st of December, 3095
On Planetary Assault MRBC Contract # DC-PA-06-07 for the Draconis Combine, the Task Force (which included Razan's Ronins) assigned to wrest control of Dieron from the FWLM, were UNSUCCESSFUL. Tai-sa Evgeni Morgan's 49th Dieron Regulars were still embroiled in a bitter holding action when the Ronin's were relieved and boosted off world after losing a guerilla engagement with the Black Dragon Society

1st of January, 3097
While working for their benefactor, the Draconis Combine Modern Innovative Tactics Division, Razan's Ronins SUCCESSFULLY neutralize the fighter screen at either JumpPoint on the Pesht Military District planet of Stapelfeld, created a diversion to tie up the 6th Raven Wing Cluster granting the 20th Pesht Regulars ample time to lift from planet, gathered intel on Staplefeld’s state of affairs, and determine the scope of operations of Clan Snow Raven on MRBC contract # DC-DR-06-02.

13th of January, 3097
It appears that the Confederated Systems of Tikonov under the guise of a pirate band has captured a Draconis Combine Tatsumaki-III Class WarShip, the Autumn Moon, as it limped back from the fight for Dieron to the Kuritan interior for repairs and refit to its jump sail and so its Kearny Fuchida drive core.

8th of March, 3097
The Federated Suns Field Marshal Xavier Steele offered a Recon Raid MRBC Contract # FS-RR-04-05 onto the Draconis Combine World of Helen to gather intelligence on enemy troops & strength in the military capital of Montague in preparation for House Davion to recapture the planet

9th of March, 3097
The Federated Suns Draconis March Sub-Commander, Field Marshal Mordecai Sandoval-Ito in conjuction with Field Marshal Xavier Steele has sanctioned an MRBC unit the rights to a 'Sneek & Peak' Recon Raid into Draconis Combine Space to deploy Antares AS-17 C3ISR Satellite in geostationary orbit of the planet Errai for the purpose of gathering intelligence on enemy troops & strength in the capital of New Pittsburgh and the planetary SpacePort with the intent of re-establishing contact with Quentin on contract # FS-OR-04-05

25th of May, 3097
While working for the Draconis Combine, DCPS Liaison Katsuie Tomoe had the Chaos Incorporated make a SUCCESSFUL drop onto Farstar and assisted in the rescue of civilians of the Draconis Combine from the Snow Ravens Delta Galaxy on MRBC Diversionary Raid contract # DC-DR-06-01

3rd of February, 3098
The scores recorded by their Draconis Combine Mustard Soldiery Liaison Officer, Tai-i Akito Mashune on the Omega Group were not sufficient enough during their training on Vega to warrant their inclusion on the upcoming assault along side of the 1st Genyosha on MRBC Cadre Duty Contract # DC-CD-02-07. Hence, the Omega Group did not qualify for the follow up Objective Raid contract and subsequently has disbanded.

15th of April, 3098
Star Colonel Kato Kabrinski Beta Galaxy's Growling Bears (C) SUCCESSFULLY garrisoned the Rasalhague Dominion world of Coudoux II along the Star Bridge corridor and neutralized Draconis Combine Mercenaries, The Regal Death and the Outlaws on MRBC Garison Duty Contract # RD-GD-04-01

3rd of May, 3098
The Razins Ronins successfully landed on Benjamin in the Draconis Combine's Benjamin Military District, Benjamin Prefecture against MRBC contract # DC-EX-04-02 an Extraction and SUCCESSFULLY during a covert operation evacuated the Governor, Timothy Yechido, and his family from Rebel members of the 2nd Benjamin Regulars.

28th of May, 3098
Star Colonel Kato Kabrinski Beta Galaxy's Growling Bears (C) SUCCESSFULLY destroy military installations on Draconis Combine world of Jeanette along the Star Bridge corridor and neutralized the DCMS unit 6th Arkab Legion on MRBC Objective Raid Contract # DC-OR-02-07

22nd of June, 3098
At the behest of ComStar Precentor VI Saralee Aarden, Eden's Guard Security & Logistics Corporation was contracted out on a Defensive Campaign # LA-DC-08-03 to reinforced the 83rd Com Guards Division on Draconis Combine World of La Blon in the Dieron Military District in which they SUCCESSFULLY assisted in neutralizing elements of 2nd Free Worlds Legionnaires

20th of June, 3100
Contract Registry RD-GD-06-01 June 20th 3100 Coudoux: Sources indicate a force of mercenaries staged a daring raid on the world of Coudoux, aided by guerilla operations on the world. Rumors abound that the Draconis Combine was behind the strike but they have not confirmed this. What is known is a series of bombing and assassination attacks on the world kicked off a savage three-week conflict between a coalition of mercenaries and the 12th Bear Guards. Damage to the communications grid gave the mercenaries an early advantage, but the Growling Bears rallied, inflicting heavy damage. The mercenaries were pushed back to their last line of defense, and requested a cease fire. Star Colonel Cade MacKenzie allowed them to depart although sources on world indicate he nearly refused to do so. The death of his Executive Officer, Star Captain Judea Radick, has been confirmed during the fighting. It is believed the 12th Bear Guards are operating at roughly 65% of capacity at this time. Notable locations in the fighting; Steadman City, Kodiak Lookout, Joven Heights, Heaven’s View Springs, Neu Lorient

Origin:
The Draconis Combine was founded in 2319 by Shiro Kurita, who used persuasive statesmanship, treachery, and bloody military conquest to forge it almost from nothing. Patterned on the culture of feudal Japan, and ruled by a hierarchy of warlords loyal to the shogunate ideals of the ruling House Kurita, the Draconis Combine is a realm whose warriors and citizenry embrace the tenets of bushido—the ancient Japanese Way of the Warrior. To the people of the Combine, honor and duty are the very cornerstones of society, without which there can be nothing. While these social mores have made the Combine’s military one of the most fearsome and fanatical on the battlefield, it was the modernist reforms of Coordinator Theodore Kurita that transformed the DCMS into an even more deadly force

Government
Autocracy
(with Japanese feudal stylings)

Culture
Imperial Japanese

Dominant Language(s)
Japanese (official)
Arabic
English

Dominant Religion(s)
Shinto (official)
Buddhism
Islam

Founding Year
2319

Currency
Ryu

History
Raised in a military and social tradition dating back more than six centuries, Shiro embraced and embodied the "way of the warrior." Through the forcefulness of his personality, he first managed to become leader of New Samarkand and then went on to form a group of petty kings and lords into the New Galendon Alliance. This Alliance, created to oppose the great Ozawa Mercantile alliance, was his starting point for the military conquest of dozens more planets. By 2319, Shiro Kurita, with his brother Urizen as Warlord, controlled a domain stretching from the border of the Federated Suns to the Principality of Rasalhague, a realm he renamed the Draconis Combine.

The most obvious legacy of Shiro Kurita is the Kurita family dynasty. The Draconis Combine could not have summoned such single-minded devotion from its people without the focus of the Kurita leadership. Only the existence of an all-powerful Coordinator has been able to mobilize such often-fanatic military determination from its troops.

More than in any Successor State, the history of the Draconis Combine has a continuous tone and theme to it. The names may change, the tactics and internal organization may change, but the Kurita dynasty continues to covet universal domination just as its founder did some 700 years ago.

Shiro Kurita's legacy continues to this day, in both the devotion to the way of the warrior and in the belief that House Kurita will one day reign over all inhabited space. The Draconis Combine's combination of an all-pervasive military tradition and a self-reliance easily mistaken for xenophobia contributes to the constant belligerence of past and present Kurita leaders. Only on rare occasions have they set aside their dominant tendencies toward violence, arrogance, and ruthlessness in favor of alliance or cooperation. However, the next generation usually made up for it by redoubling its martial nature. The two most outstanding examples of this were Hehiro and Minoru Kurita.

Hehiro engaged in a rare display of trust when he signed the Treaty of Vega in 2569, setting forth the terms of the Draconis Combine's membership in the nascent Star League. His son Leonard, who succeeded him in 2591, very nearly undid this act through flagrant violations of his father's treaty with Ian Cameron. After Kerensky's exodus from the Inner Sphere, Minoru Kurita proclaimed himself First Lord of the Star League and began to plan and execute a massive attack against the Federated Suns. The campaign was going well for the Kuritans until a sniper shot Minoru Kurita in the back on Kentares IV. Following Minoru's assassination, his psychotic son Jinjiro massacred 50 million civilians on that world. The Kentares Massacre was an act that not only destroyed the momentum gained in the war against Davion, but also contributed to the alienation between Houses Steiner and Kurita, which Jinjiro allowed to flourish.

Until Rasalhague became independent in 3034, the Draconis Combine had expanded to the border of the Lyran Commonwealth, absorbing lesser states along the way. For 20 years the Free Rasalhague Republic served as a buffer between those two Great Houses, with only a small portion of Kurita space bordering the Lyran portion of the Federated Commonwealth. Now the Clan wedge serves to keep most of these two realms separate.

At present, the Combine consists of approximately 75 worlds. In 2617, the coreward world of Luthien replaced New Samarkand as the administrative capital, but Shiro Kurita's homeworld continues to play an active role. For example, House Kurita draws its palace guards and elite MechWarriors from the famous Sun Zhang Academy, the largest MechWarrior academy in the Inner Sphere. Furthermore, New Samarkand is the traditional base of operations for the Internal Security Force, the secret police of the Draconis Combine. The relationship between the Coordinator of the Combine and the Director of the ISF has varied, waxing and waning in cordiality through the years. Nevertheless, the ISF has remained utterly loyal to the Combine, if not to the House that rules it.

Though the Draconis Combine lost more than 50 worlds in the Fourth Succession War, this same conflict saw the brilliant rise of Theodore Kurita, heir to the Combine throne. His unconventional tactics were so successful that he earned the support and confidence of much of the Combine's military. Despite the power struggle this created between Theodore and Takashi, the Coordinator was almost forced to name his son Deputy of Military Affairs in 3030. Theodore took this opportunity to reshape the Combine's military to his own views. It was Theodore who masterminded the strategy that successfully resisted the Federated Commonwealth's massive invasion of the Combine in the War of 3039.

Theodore also saw the wisdom of recognizing the Free Rasalhague Republic when its former Rasalhague Military District declared its independence from the Combine. The Free Rasalhague Republic created a buffer state between the Combine and the Lyran Commonwealth, freeing up Combine troops for assignment on other borders.

Though Takashi and his son were often in disagreement during these crucial years, Theodore's successes and support among the military were undeniable. Some old-liners still oppose Theodore's methods and innovations, but the Coordinator seems to have made his peace with his son ever since Theodore's relative successes against the Clans in the recent invasion.

3050 Update:
[Prepared by Justin Allard, Intelligence Secretary of the Federated Commonwealth.]

The most significant events occurring in the Draconis Combine since the Fourth Succession War are the rise of Theodore Kurita, the secession of Rasalhague, and the War of 3039, in which Federated Commonwealth forces attempted to recapture worlds lost to House Kurita in the Fourth War. Though Federated Commonwealth commanders expected to easily defeat the Combine forces, the Kuritans surprised us with the strength and cleverness of their resistance. In the end, our massive invasion resulted in the capture of only seven worlds: Cylene, Lima, March, McComb, Murchison, Royal, and Skat. The Kuritans took three: Fomalhaut, Quentin, and Saffel.

Rise of Theodore:
Theodore Kurita, Coordinator Takashi's only offspring, may be the most powerful man in the Draconis Combine, even though it is his father who holds the highest title of power. Theodore's rise began with his successes against the Steiner military in the Fourth Succession War. In contrast, Takashi lost the support of many Combine citizens because of his behavior during that conflict.

The Coordinator's obsession with destroying Wolf's Dragoons after the mercenaries left the Draconis Combine in 3028 seemed to border on madness. Coordinator Kurita took the case to a ComStar Review Board, but the Board ruled no fault. While he was concentrating all his energy and attention on the Dragoons along the Davion border, the Combine military effort on the Commonwealth front suffered greatly. Takashi, meanwhile, became increasingly irrational, flying into fits of rage and ranting that he wanted the skins and skulls of the Dragoons' commanding officers.

Constance Kurita, Keeper of the Family Honor, stepped in a few weeks before the war's end, demanding that Takashi undergo intensive medical examination. What the doctors found was that the Coordinator had suffered a stroke severe enough to affect his mental functioning sometime in the previous two years. They also predicted he would suffer another, even more debilitating one unless he underwent a series of operations to remove dangerous blood clots and to repair weakened arteries.

While all this was occurring, Theodore was gaining in prestige and influence in the Dieron Military District. While Warlord Cherenkoff virtually twiddled his thumbs, Theodore went from command of three regiments of misfits to de facto military control of the important Dieron Military District. Through shrewd analysis and daring strategies, he succeeded in reversing the Combine's woeful military situation by stopping the Commonwealth offensive cold.

The Combine still lost more than 50 star systems in the Fourth War and many of its best regiments were mauled, yet the defeat might have been even more devastating if not for Theodore Kurita's brilliance. He emerged from the war as a hero, while Takashi's aura was tarnished. This set off a power struggle within the Combine, though the Dragon realm seems to have emerged stronger rather than weaker from the crisis.

Even after the war was over, Theodore Kurita continued to expand on his power and popularity. As a result of his skillful leadership during the war, he eventually won the support of most of the regiments of the Rasalhague, Dieron, and Benjamin Military Districts. All unwittingly, Theodore had also impressed the yakuza, the Combine's organized crime syndicate, who saw him as a new and potent force compared to the stagnation that Takashi represented. These yakuza later pledged their support to Theodore and helped him resist the Federated Commonwealth's massive invasion of the Combine in 3039.

Takashi has always been harsh toward his son, but he could not ignore Theodore's immense popularity with both the military and the people. In 3030, the Coordinator felt obliged to award Theodore the Order of the Dragon in honor of his achievements during the war. In that year, he also appointed his son Gunji no Kanrei, Deputy for Military Affairs. Takashi may have believed it was a hollow honor, but Theodore leaped at the chance to re-mold the Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery according to his own desires. As Kanrei, virtually no one stood in his way.

Also at this time, it is believed that Theodore Kurita made a secret deal with Myndo Waterly, Primus of ComStar. We have reason to suspect that Waterly offered to supply House Kurita with 'Mechs, equipment, and troops if Theodore would allow her to station ComStar forces in the Combine and if he would support the creation of the Free Rasalhague Republic. Theodore apparently accepted the deal, because the Draconis Combine quickly recognized the Free Rasalhague Republic after it declared its independence, despite the fact that the Combine had to give up worlds to that new state.

Also in his camp was Constance Kurita, Keeper of the House Honor and head of the Order of the Five Pillars (O5P). As head of the O5P, Constance had access to her Order's considerable intelligence capacities, and she may have been inclined to put this information at Theodore's disposal. The Coordinator's son may also have benefited from his special friendship with Subhash Indrahar, dreaded Director of the Combine's Internal Security Force.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Constance and Indrahar must surely have assisted Theodore in keeping secret his marriage to Tomoe Sakade for so long. The two were married in 3019, but Theodore did not reveal the fact to his father until 3033, when Tomoe had already borne him two children, one of them a son. It is well-known that in all those years Takashi was anxious to see his son married and the succession of his line guaranteed by the birth of a child. The Coordinator actually arranged several marriages for his son, but all were canceled for one reason or another.]

The Ronin War:
On March 13, 3034, Haakon Magnusson declared himself Prince of the Free Rasalhague Republic, which included most of the former Rasalhague Military District of the Draconis Combine. ComStar quickly recognized the new state, as did Takashi Kurita. The FRR created a buffer state between the Combine and the Lyran Commonwealth, freeing up Combine troops for use on other borders. Only about 20 Rasalhague District worlds remained under Combine control as the Alshain District, while the Lyrans gave up most of what they had captured in the Fourth Succession War. The new Alshain District included ten worlds of the Buckminster Prefecture. Duke Hassid Ricol was appointed Governor, possibly in return for a copy of the Star League library core that the Gray Death Legion had discovered on Helm six years before.

Not all the Warlords of the Combine accepted the decision to recognize Rasalhague's independence. Ivan Sorenson, Warlord of the Rasalhague Military District, was assassinated before he even knew of the Draconis Combine's acquiescence in the FRR's birth. However, the Warlords of Pesht and Dieron Districts, Marcus Kurita and Vasily Cherenkoff, disagreed violently with the decision to surrender Combine worlds and vowed to fight. Under the leadership of Marcus Kurita, the renegade forces attacked the FRR.

Theodore branded these men ronin, declaring that they did not act in the name of the Draconis Combine. Then he sent DCMS troops to cut off the ronin from their supply bases in the Combine and ordered his men to crush any resistance.

Vasily Cherenkoff died in the ronin invasion when his Atlas was beheaded on Orestes. His second-in-command, Tai-sho Dexter Kingsley, withdrew from the fight and swore his allegiance to the Kanrei, which cut off Marcus Kurita's support. In May of 3034, Marcus Kurita was assassinated in his field headquarters on Predlitz. The Kuritans blamed the Lyran Commonwealth, but it is just as likely that one of their own ruling clan wanted the eternally scheming Marcus Kurita out of the way.

The Kanrei benefited in several ways from the Ronin War. Because he was fighting against rebellious elements in his own military, it was a way of purging those disloyal troops. Warlords Cherenkoff and Marcus Kurita, two adversaries, were also permanently out of the way. Finally, because Theodore withdrew his troops after they had helped to crush the rebels, he raised his stock with the FRR considerably.

Theodore's Innovations:
As Kanrei, Theodore has made many changes in the DCMS to make it a stronger, more efficient force. New 'Mech and fighter pilots, many of them yakuza, were trained in the rebuilding of the Ryuken and Genyosha regiments as well as at special field academies. This training stressed practical cooperation rather than political correctness, emphasizing coordination between front and rear echelons and among the various military branches. Early in this training program, Coordinator Takashi had attempted to undercut this new military trend by ordering that the Genyosha and Ryuken be dispersed among the rest of the DCMS in June 3031. Rather than diluting Theodore's ideas, this merely served to disseminate them widely throughout the ranks. The reformation of the Ryuken and Genyosha, however, was set back severely, and those regiments came back together barely in time for the War of 3039. To our surprise, Theodore was making other major changes in the DCMS.

War of 3039:
The success of Theodore's policies became clear during the War of 3039, when Federated Commonwealth forces mounted a four-pronged offensive against the Draconis Combine. Theodore coordinated and planned his defense so skillfully that it caught the Davion invasion force by surprise. The war continued until early 3040, but it soon became the old game of mutual raid-and-reprisal, rather than a major offensive that had the Combine on the run.

Long after the war, Federated Commonwealth military intelligence still has not been able to discern what Theodore Kurita did and how he did it. What is known is that the Draconis Combine fielded a large number of units that we still have not been able to identify. The DCMS also fielded 'Mechs of design seen only in the Com Guards and variants with unexpected capabilities. Warriors should exercise great caution in encounters with any unknown 'Mech type and with Kurita Chargers, which may have increased weaponry, or special two-seat BattleMasters, which have enhanced communications and command capabilities.

Politics: Takashi's Status:
Much of the blame for the Combine's poor showing during the Fourth War can be laid at the door of Coordinator Takashi Kurita. His erratic behavior shook the confidence of many nobles and other high Combine officials. The only person to challenge the Coordinator's power was the late Marcus Kurita, who made several attempts against Takashi's life and went renegade during the Ronin War. Most Combine officials have been biding their time to see how the chips will fall in the unspoken struggle for dominance between father and son.

Takashi's most important support is among the older officers of the DCMS, mainly because Theodore's sweeping renovations have stripped them of much of their prestige.

Theodore's Status:
Theodore's military successes during the Fourth War and the War of 3039 have solidified his position as the Combine's great military genius, while his rank of Kanrei has given him the power to shape the military with virtually no interference. He can count on the support of most of the younger officers, non-commissioned officers, and enlisted troops, who admire and even revere him. Women and officers from the lower classes, particularly MechWarriors, have a special loyalty to Theodore because it was he who removed the barriers that prevented them from rising in rank and importance. Of all Theodore's supporters, however, the yakuza are the most ardent. By acknowledging their value and giving them a chance to assist him militarily, he has won the fervent support of most yakuza clans in the Combine.

The main opponents of Theodore Kurita are the die-hard older officers of the DCMS, who resent being forced to give up the old ways in which rank alone gave them unquestioned authority. There has been an insidious war within the bureaucracy of the DCMS since Theodore became Warlord, with the older officers trying desperately to hold on to their power while trying to hinder Theodore's reforms. This has been mostly a losing battle, however, as Theodore "requests" more and more of these officers to retire or as they see their most prominent comrades killed.

Reconciliation:
The truce between Takashi and his son, which began in 3039, seems solid. From what we can gather, the two have agree to maintain their respective power bases, with Takashi exercising authority over social, economic, and political matters, and Theodore controlling the military. The two are often seen together publicly, and usually with Theodore's wife and children in tow.

That is significant because Theodore's personal life was once a sore point between the Coordinator and his son. For now, Theodore seems content to play the dutiful son in public, no doubt because he and his father realize that public support in the freer, more open Combine society will be the key to their political survival. Both have become conscious of the power of the new independent Combine media and are learning to make clever use of it.

Foreign Relations:
Relations with other "friendly" realms have suffered while the leaders of the Combine dealt with major internal problems and then the invasion of 3039.

We have learned that there is a movement afoot in the Combine to renew alliances beyond the border of the Combine. Some, perhaps including Theodore, believe that a successful alliance is possible even though the members will be separated by the Federated Commonwealth. Indeed, if ComStar's support of the Combine is as extensive as believed, this could easily give the Combine and any allies special communication and transportation privileges.

An alliance with the Capellan Confederation is unlikely because of the weakness of the Capellan military and Romano Liao's unpredictability. An alliance with the Free Worlds League might be more probable because of that state's proximity, strength, and strong contacts with ComStar. According to latest reports, Combine diplomatic missions have made visits to Captain-General Marik.

Border Changes:
The creation of the Free Rasalhague Republic from the Combine's former Rasalhague District left a band of planets that became the heart of the Alshain Military District. Ruled by the planet Alshain, this District is a long, thin region bordering the new FRR. It consists of the 20 Rasalhague worlds that the Combine did not surrender to the FRR, plus ten worlds from the Buckminster Province. The Alshain District is divided into three Prefectures named for their capitals: Buckminster, Garstedt, and Rubigen.

The reshuffling of Combine assets into the new prefecture allowed Theodore to staff the region with many political allies, including Duke Ricol, formerly of Verthandi. The Duke was named Governor in 3034, directly after the Combine recognized the FRR.

DCMS:
As Kanrei, Theodore has made many sweeping changes in the DCMS through the manipulation of personnel and resources. Among his first actions was the establishment of "Tiger Programs," which resemble the Federated Commonwealth's regional training battalions. Theodore's military changes also include active recruitment of the best warriors for Theodore's loyal regiments, regardless of social rank or sex.

At first, most warriors trained in the ten Tiger Programs were assigned to one of the five Ruyken regiments or two Genyosha regiments. These regiments and the four Legions of Vega were the core of Theodore's support until his father ordered them disbanded in 3031. Even disbanded, however, they served Theodore as his eyes and ears among the other regiments. His secret deals with ComStar and the yakuza also gave him the means to create a number of other private regiments whose skill and loyalty were crucial during the War of 3039, along with the newly reconstituted Ryuken and Genyosha.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: These private regiments, composed largely of Underworld characters, women, and people from the lower classes of Kurita society, are still largely a mystery. Wolfnet refer to them as "ghost regiments" and have identified approximately twelve such units.]

Theodore has also altered the ranking system in the DCMS. Previously, ranks from Recruit through Sergeant Major were considered too unimportant to rate a Japanese name. In Theodore's new army, all ranks are treated as important and deserving of respect, and so the lower ranks now have the following Japanese names:

Recruit: Hojuhei
Private: Heishi
Lance Corporal: Gunjin
Corporal: Go-cho
Sergeant: Gunsho
Mater Sergeant: Shujin
Talon Sergeant: Kashira
Sergeant Major: Sho-ko

Warlords received the new title of Tai-shu. The Kanrei also gave MechWarriors and AeroSpace Pilots the title Busosenshito express his respect for their worth. Before this, the DCMS did not hold its aerojocks in high esteem.

Theodore altered battlefield tactics as well. In 3036, he wrote a text on his philosophy of combat, Modern Tactics: The Combined Arms Approach. It reflected his interest in the combined-service attacks used so successfully by the AFFC. Since then, the DCMS is more likely to attack with groups of units, each from a different military background. This proved especially effective in the Kanrei's defense strategies in the War of 3039.

To the older officers, Theodore's ideas and the influx of warriors from all classes seemed almost heretical, even if effective. As proof, they point to the lack of discipline and honor shown by some younger soldiers.

The military industry of the DCMS is remarkably free of such political divisions because it survives no matter who holds power in the realm. After the creation of the Free Rasalhague Republic deprived the Combine of two 'Mech factories, efforts were made to expand existing facilities. Their increased production, along with the ComStar 'Mechs, have apparently given the DCMS the luxury of surplus 'Mechs and parts.

Social and Economic Reforms:
Believing that the Capellan Confederation's rigorous social stratification was responsible for their defeat in the Fourth War, Coordinator Takashi instituted the Pillar Reforms in 3043. These laws, which relax the restraints on social classes in Combine society, are a major reinterpretation of the Dictum Honorium. The Reforms also allow citizens more privacy than previously. While these reforms may trouble Constance Kurita and the ISF, neither has openly opposed them.

The Pillar Reforms also address the economy. They give corporations greater freedom to chart their own destinies. The reforms also attempt to stimulate inter-realm trade by increasing construction of commercial JumpShips, as well as releasing ships requisitioned by the DCMS decades, even centuries, ago.

Trade with the Federated Commonwealth continues to be forbidden, as it has been for the past 20 years. Trade with the Free Worlds League, the Capellan Confederation, and the Free Rasalhague Republic is encouraged.

The Pillar Reforms seem to have inspired a great sense of optimism among the Combine's ordinary citizens. In addition to enjoying greater personal freedom, people in the Combine have a higher standard of living for the first time in a century.

Goals and Problems:
It is likely that the strengthening of the DCMS will continue. Takashi may be wary of the DCMS's loyalty to his son, but the two seem to have an improved relationship. Besides, the Coordinator has a vested interest in making his borders with the Federated Commonwealth secure or in being able to launch an offense. Related to these goals are his recent diplomatic efforts toward the Free Worlds League. An alliance of these two states could complicate the Federated Commonwealth's plans.

It is expected that the Coordinator's social and economic reforms will continue, giving the Combine a strong economy and a contented people in the second half of the 31st Century.

The tensions between Coordinator Takashi and Kanrei Theodore are the biggest potential problem facing the Draconis Combine. Though the dispute between the two seems less public in recent years, it would be naive to believe that it no longer exists.

The history of troubles between the two is mirrored in the DCMS by the older, aristocratic officers loyal to the Coordinator and the younger, more pragmatic officers of the Kanrei's new army. If something were to disrupt the fragile working relationship between the Coordinator and his son, it could wreak havoc on the DCMS and the Combine.

Finally, the increased personal freedoms outlined in the Pillar Reforms have brought a sudden increase in crime and the expression of dissident political opinions. The introduction of even harsher punishments for lawbreakers has not deterred either criminals or dissidents. There are those within the government, notably the ISF and the O5P, who might be provoked to take action against these trends without the Coordinator's permission. Again, this could upset the balance of power and seriously weaken the Combine's position.

The 3070s - Decade of Changing Hearts:
Hohiro Kurita assumed the title of Coordinator of the Draconis Combine after his father, Theodore Kurita, dies on February 11th, 3070. Hohiro had been commanding the 1st Genyosha at the time of his father’s death, a posting he had possessed since stepping down as the Commanding General of the Star League Defense Force (SLDF), and resigning from the SLDF Triumvirate. The members of the SLDF Triumvirate at the time were Nova Cat Khan Santin West, the upper commanders of the Com Guards, and Hohiro’s friend, Victor Steiner-Davion. Hohiro’s faith in the ideals of the Star League would begin to wane in the opening months of 3071, souring his relationships with Victor and the realms he represented: the Federated Suns and the Lyran Alliance.

The Terran Security Act of June 9th, 3071 shattered Hohiro’s allegiance to the tenets of the Star League, which had just forcibly taken the systems of Yorii, Asta, Saffel, and Fomalhaut, claiming those planets in the name of security, effectively cutting off Combine citizens from its home nation. In the 3076, the world of Marduk, along the border with the Federated Suns, was lost to that realm, as well as retreating from Quentin. The rest of 3075 would see more of the same from the Star League: the Star League Senate, rife with bickering between Combine senators and the res t of the Senate.

The proverbial dam broke on April 20th, 3079 when the innocuous “Aston” file was leaked to the public. The file contained various summaries of all the nations in the Inner Sphere, as well as select Clan reviews. The already shaky relationship between the Combine and the Star League - and by extension, the Coordinator and the Star League – was assaulted even further when Combine grievances were made public, resulting in heated rhetoric in from the Senate down towards the common citizen on the street. Preferential treatment by the Star League upon the Lyran Alliance and the Federated Suns could be conjectured from the “Aston File”; even if these allegations were false, the citizens of the Combine railed against the Star League, the Lyran Alliance, and the Federated Suns. The abuses of those appointed to oversee former Combine worlds – Yorii and Altair – came to light in late 3079, resulting in bigger protests from the ex-Combine citizens on those worlds, and from concerned Combine citizens.

The 3080s - Beginning of the Flood:
The rise of Gregor Rosse to the senior Khanship of Clan Nova Cat, and their renewed allegiance to House Kurita, was the showcase of 3080. Despite being labeled rogues, the Coordinator officially included all Nova Cat forces, including the ex-SLDF 4th Army, into the defense of the Combine, and the Irece Prefecture essentially became home to all Clan Nova Cat. With the defense of the Irece Prefecture the responsibility of Clan Nova Cat, Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery (DCMS) units could be shifted to other military districts; the only notable exception is the posting of the 14th Sun Zhang Cadre to Irece. The brainchild of Minoru (formerly Kurita) Nova Cat, Oathmaster of Clan Nova Cat, the 14th Sun Zhang Cadre would evaluate all of those who tested out of the Warrior Caste training program for possible military service in the DCMS. For those who wished to fight for the DCMS, they bring with them the genetic makeup of a Clan warrior, as well as any military training prior to testing out, and the DCMS gains another pool of personnel bred to be warriors, and though not cut out for the Clan military, may benefit the Dragon.

The worlds of Yorii and Asta, both in the Terran Security Act, were ceded to the Combine to help build the bridge the chasm between the Star League and the Combine, and by extension, the Coordinator, but the memory of the power abuses by Star League officials on both of those worlds, as well as Altair, continue to polarize the citizens of the Combine against the Star League. This wave of anti-Star League sentiment leads a couple of entities within the Combine to strike out against the alleged puppeteers behind the Star League: the Lyran Alliance and the Federated Suns.

On December 20th, 3081, elements of the ex-SLDF 4th Army (primarily pro-Combine Clan Nova Cat warriors), Ghost regiments, Nationalist Militias, ISF, and anti-Star League sympathizers, strike out along the Steiner and Davion borders, taking control of ten systems in the process. Quickly following the initial wave of attacks, a second wave hits the same two fronts, capturing an additional ten systems. Rumors abound whether or not the Coordinator, who has been increasingly dissatisfied with the Star League and its member nations, personally ordered these waves of attacks, ordered his warlords to do what is necessary, or the individual entities struck out on their own, especially in relation to the Nationalist Militias and anti-Star League sympathizers. With the appointment of Masayoshi Kitakyusho as Gunji-no-Kanrei (former commander of Ryuken-ni) for the duration of these conflicts, only time will reveal any clarification on this situation, but for now, the Combine stands ready to go to war.

MHB Depot Locations:
An Ting

Bjarred

Soul

Vega

Wolcott

A ROM Report:State of the Dragon:

As we write, House Kurita is in a fairly strong position economically and militarily compared to its history. Despite setbacks of worlds lost to the situation out of Tikonov, industrial production remains near historic highs to make the Pillar of Jade seem more luminescent than during the days of the Fed-Com Civil War. Military Academy and University enrollments are also high, and national fervor is evident in the popularity of a recent string of patriotic feature films, hit songs and top publications. An epic-length biography of Boris Petroff’s exemplary service to the Combine is set to hit shelves this holiday season.

Not all is rosy however, and the Pillar of Steel has suffered some scratches along the way since the seeming end of the 5th Succession War. There was the debacle on Land’s End along the border with Clan Snow Raven, that world nearly lost in an embarrassing Pyrrhic victory that saw the once prestigious Akki-Tsubasa, now Aura Wings, fail to defend the construction of an experimental surface to orbital defense system. The many lives and c-bills that the DCPS and DCMS hold the mercenaries responsible for losing has put them in the dog house over the past few years, and they limped back to their fiefdom of Galtor III in shame only to embroil themselves in civil war to end the 3080s.

Then of course there is the blight of an aggressive Agatha Rousset-Marik, quickly gobbling up many worlds of the Chaos March including those of the Draconis Combine. The DCMS lost several Battle Groups in the fighting, and several others still remain under strength as a result of beatings they took at the hands of ULTRA forces. However, the Pillar of Steel still stands tall and preparations are visible along the border to stem the possibility of a new offensive, and to strike back when the time comes.

Echoes of the 5th Succession War:

Most would consider the Draconis Combine to have gained more than it lost from the 5th Succession War. If territory and the resources that come with it were the only criteria, then House Kurita might have appeared to be a clear winner. A number of worlds that were under the jurisdiction of House Steiner and House Davion now remain in Kuritan control. Even a number of worlds of the former Rasalhague district and then the Rasalhague Dominion remain under the wing of the Dragon, adding to the productive might of the military state’s mixed market economy. Some of these worlds still suffer the problems of a belligerent populace, but time heals all wounds given enough of it.

The former Star League Administered systems fell largely into the hands of House Kurita as well, although the sudden offensive by the Unified Leadership of the Tikonov Republic and House Marik have turned this back against the Dragon and then some. As it stands, even Dieron rests in Agatha’s hands as Kuritan systems all the way from Yorii, Rigil Kentarus and Fornalhaut to Lambrech, Telos IV and Al Na’ir have fallen to the onslaught of the Free World’s League’s machinations as of this writing.

Yet still, despite the obvious seriousness to most of the other inhabitants of the Inner Sphere as to the ULTRA and FWL threat, the Dragon seemed slow to react as late as 3091. With the death of the Benjamin Military District Warlord, Boris Petroff, his replacement, Lee Heyama, sought to stoke fire with House Davion yet again along his district's border. In August of 3091 he sent the 46th Benjamin Regulars, Ryuken-ryu, 2nd Amphigean Light Assault (reformed in 3088), and the 2nd Aura Wings to conquer Marduk of all places, resting the system away from the 5th Crucis Lancers, who were allowed to withdraw. Many analysts think Heyama lucky the Davions did not retaliate, perhaps because of their own preoccupation with more than a few problems of their own.

Heyama, however, had something to prove in filling Petroff’s shoes. And so did the mercenary Aura Wings, seeing their first deployment after finding a way to give themselves a new lease on life. They consolidated themselves in their own internal struggle, fended off a Draconis March-sponsored uprising and covert attack on their home of Galtor III, and found a way to field a regiment to fulfill the Warlord’s command. The Warlord’s gamble appears to have paid off however, with the capture of Marduk providing an important industrial production site to help fill some of the gap left by the loss of worlds still in the hands of the Free World’s League. Worlds such as Dieron, Al Na’ir and others.

Common Enemies:

The first half of 3092 saw the signing of two pieces: the Treaty of Marduk and the Treaty of La Blon. By signing these treaties with House Davion and House Steiner respectively, Hohiro has galvanized the DCMS in focus of repelling Agatha and restoring the systems lost to their rightful place under the Dragon’s wing. Each includes terms for non-aggression pacts between House Kurita and each of the others for a term of five years, and House Liao’s exclusion of the treaty has not been taken as a slight by the Chancellor or the Magestrix, as these two realms have always been trade partners and have conflicted little with each other over the centuries.