Catalyst Game Labs

FIVE AGAINST ONE…

It was supposed to be just another exercise-a Star of light 'Mechs against one assault 'Mech. Jackson is a ristar cadet in Clan Smoke Jaguar, renowned-and envied-for never losing a battle. The five cadets beneath him in the rankings plan to hand him his first defeat. But the training goes terribly wrong, and before the day is over, there are winners and losers-and one cadet will not survive the day.

That training exercise sets in motion a chain of actions that encompasses both events that occurred decades earlier, and those yet to come. Now a full MechWarrior, Star Captain Jackson searches for answers-both about his past, and what had happened that fateful day. But what he learns are secrets that threaten to upend his entire life-and make him reconsider what it means to be a Smoke Jaguar…

REDEMPTION. RESISTANCE. RESOLVE.

A young Davion MechWarrior seeks to repay a debt incurred by the misfortunes of the Fourth Succession War. A tightly-knit farming community bands together to repel vicious pirates or risk losing their livelihoods...and their lives. A Kurita MechWarrior given a final chance to serve the Dragon stands alone against renegade mercenaries. And the survivors of a crash-landed Steiner command must hold the line against ravenous Word of Blake forces to protect the Allied Coalition's quest to wrest Terra from the Blakists' unyielding grip.

Kill Zone: BattleCorps Anthology, Volume 7 collects the very best of the short stories published on the BattleCorps website from 2010. Charge into the war-torn future to experience nine stories filled with BattleMech combat, heroism, betrayal, honor, and duty.

Veteran BattleTech authors Kevin Killiany, Blaine Lee Pardoe, and Jason Schmetzer, alongside fan favorites Craig A. Reed, Jr. and Jason Hansa are showcased in this anthology, which includes an all-new tale from Scribe Award-nominated author Travis Heermann.

BURDEN OF PROOF...

For too long the planet Stewart, the ancestral home of one of the oldest dynasties of the Free Worlds League, has remained in the clutches of Clan Wolf, locked behind a mutual nonaggression pact between the Wolf Empire and the League. But the Wolves have unexpectedly abandoned much of their territory, leaving many systems ripe for the taking.

The news of the Wolf Empire's poorly defended border spurs Count Gavin Stewart and the Silver Hawk Irregulars to take back his family's homeland while the Wolves are away, but his invasion threatens to destabilize the entire region. Recognizing the long-term danger, Captain Trenton Marik, Gavin's longtime friend, must travel to Stewart and convince Gavin and the Irregulars to withdraw before the Wolves return home in force and strike back.

But rumors of a conqueror claiming Terra?an ilClan, which demands all Clans bend the knee?stir up divided loyalties within the League's Clan Protectorate province, and the Protectorate's warriors must choose between fealty to the League or obedience to the ilClan. And the best path to proving their loyalty is to swiftly punish all who would dare invade the Wolf Empire...

TRADITIONS RUN DEEP…

Most mercenary units fly flags on two flagpoles at their headquarters: one with their unit's flag, and other bearing the flag of their current employer. However, the Third Regimental Combat Team-a.k.a. the Eridani Light Horse-leaves one flagpole bare, as a reminder of the death of the Star League, and the other pole flies the Light Horse's unit and regimental flags at half-mast.

What triumphs and tragedies shaped the Eridani Light Horse and its traditions? What drove them to become a force to be reckoned with, an elite mercenary unit with one of the longest histories and the deepest traditions in the Inner Sphere? Now, collected for the first time, nine of BattleTech's finest authors bring the legacy of this storied unit to life like never before.

Witness the Eridani Light Horse's origins in the Star League, and follow their evolution all the way through the Succession Wars and the Clan Invasion to their downfall during the Dark Age and their resurrection in the uncertain future of the ilClan era.

Featuring stories from: Joel Steverson Craig A. Reed, Jr. Chris Hussey Randall N. Bills Jason Hansa Daniel Isberner Alan Brundage Jason Schmetzer Michael J. Ciaravella

A WORLD UNDER SIEGE…

After repelling the brutal Capellan Confederation's vain attempt to capture their planet's working HPG, the people of Northwind had hoped to get a break from the growing conflict in the wake of the splintering of the Republic of the Sphere. But Capellan ruler Daoshen Liao has other plans for the beleaguered world, sending wave after wave of mercenaries to grind Northwind's defenses into bloody dust.

Standing against them is what is left of the legendary Northwind Highlanders, particularly the Grey Watch. Already heroes for driving the Capellans off-planet, the valiant warriors of the Watch are now fighting a campaign of attrition, hoping to beat back the rampaging mercenary hordes. But when a Knight of the Republic arrives with universe-changing news, the men and women of the Grey Watch must face a remade Inner Sphere and find their place in it…or perish.

JUMP BACK INTO THE COCKPIT!

Picking up the battle standard for BattleTech fiction, Shrapnel: The Official BattleTech Magazine continues the tradition of hard-hitting stories set in the war-torn interstellar future of the 31st century and beyond. Fire up your 'Mech's fusion reactor, secure your neurohelmet, and wade into battle with stories from the merciless front lines of the Clan Invasion and other eras, conspiracy theory articles, game scenarios, and more from veteran BattleTech authors, fan favorites, and some new recruits.

Featuring:

Michael A. Stackpole • Blaine Lee Pardoe Kevin Killiany • Craig A. Reed, Jr. • Chris Hussey Jason Hansa • Lance Scarinci • Michael J. Ciaravella Patrick Wynne • Aaron Cahall

EVER VIGILANT

Shrapnel: The Official BattleTech Magazine is your latest intel report on enemy movements across the war-torn, BattleMech-dominated battlefields of the 31st century and beyond!

Among the shattered remnants of the Free Worlds League, a Marik Protector vows to track down a missing compatriot and save them from an unspeakable fate in the Marian Hegemony. A pirate-hunting Hell's Horses Elemental must do anything to escape a dead-end unit and erase the shame of the Mark of Hell, even if it leaves her unarmed and vulnerable. When a Republic Armed Forces pilot program seeks to showcase the effectiveness of remote-controlled 'Mechs, the controllers discover life and death is real, no matter what side of the screen you're on.

Step onto a not-so-abandoned rock in the Deep Periphery where the inhabitants guard a secret worth killing for. Visit New Samarkand, the temporary capital of the Draconis Combine, for the most audacious heist of the century. Then stop at Paradise for a while, where mercenary commander Ace Darwin not-so-discreetly test-drives an under-wraps 'Mech prototype. Finally, end your journey through the Inner Sphere on Galatea, the Mercenary's Star, for the latest Death Kangaroos (mis)adventure from Michael A. Stackpole. And make sure you stick around for the brutal conclusion of Russell Zimmerman's serial novel, Violent Inception.

Guard yourself against surprise attacks with in-depth looks at the Free Guilds of Clan society; the Federated Suns' attempt to recover from the Palmyra Disaster on 3144; the lawless "free zones" on some Lyran Commonwealth worlds; and the hyperpulse generators that make interstellar communication possible. Then strike back with playable scenarios, technical readouts, and more, from BattleTech veterans and the newest enlistees:

Russell Zimmerman

Michael A. Stackpole

D. G. P. Rector

Lukasz Furmaniak

James Bixby

Bryan Carter

Giles Gammage

O. J. S. Goodman

Brian F. Kenny

Lorcan Nagle

Alayna M. Weathers

Marc Follin

Wunji Lau

Edward McEneely

Mike Miller

Eric Salzman

Zac Schwartz

Tom Stanley

Stephen Toropov

PEACE MAY SELL…BUT WHAT IF NO ONE'S BUYING?

On 21 May 3052, the seemingly unstoppable military juggernaut of the invading Clans was defeated in a pitched campaign on the quiet world of Tukayyid. This astonishing victory bought the weary armies of the Inner Sphere a fifteen-year stay before the invasion can resume. But despite the truce, the fire driving the Clans' centuries-long quest to conquer Terra, the birthplace of humankind, and rebuild Inner Sphere civilization in their warmongering image has not been extinguished. Conflict still rages above the truce line, and the Clans are biding their time until the tide of war can surge up and flood the Inner Sphere once more.

Slack Tide collects nine stories that chronicle the life-and-death struggles still being waged in the wake of Tukayyid's so-called peace. Fan-favorite authors such as Jason Hansa, Philip A. Lee, and Craig A. Reed, Jr. spin tales of undercover operatives seeking to gain the secrets of Clan BattleMech technology, Inner Sphere MechWarriors attempting dangerous escapes from Clan-controlled planets, and mercenaries fighting to protect the only things that truly matter to them-themselves and their loved ones.

The Clans' invasion may have been temporarily halted, but the true battles for the future of the Inner Sphere have only just begun…

TRADITIONS RUN DEEP...
Other mercenary units fly flags at two flagpoles at their headquarters, one with their unit's flag, and other bearing the flag of their current employer. However, the Third Regimental Combat Team?a.k.a. the Eridani Light Horse?leaves one flagpole bare, as a reminder of the death of the Star League, and the other pole flies the Light Horse's unit and regimental flags at half-mast.
What triumphs and tragedies shaped the Eridani Light Horse and its traditions? What drove them to become a force to be reckoned with, an elite mercenary unit with one of the longest histories and the deepest traditions in the Inner Sphere? Witness the unit's origins in the Star League and follow their evolution all the way through the Succession Wars and the Clan Invasion to their downfall in the Dark Age and their resurrection in the uncertain future of the ilClan era.
Part Ten: Strong as Steel by Michael J. Ciaravella: In the uncertain future following the fall of the Republic of the Sphere, the Eridani Light Horse name has reemerged, but can this reborn unit live up to the weight of its own storied history?

The great Star League general, Aleksandr Kerensky. Colonel Archer Christifori, a man with a score to settle. Neilson Geist, on Christmas patrol. MechWarrior Joanna of Clan Jade Falcon. A Sandoval scion. An eleven-year-old girl. Northwind Highlanders. A prisoner of war. They all have two things in common.

A universe torn apart by unending warfare.

A mission to stand up against the darkness.

This compilation contains a selection of eighteen of 2004's best BattleTech fiction pieces, as well as an all new story about young Kerensky by Loren L. Coleman!

Includes stories by your old favorite BattleTech authors: Randall N. Bills, Loren L. Coleman, Blaine Lee Pardoe, Robert Thurston, and Michael A. Stackpole

As well as stories by new favorites: Ilsa J. Bick, Dan Duval, Jason M. Hardy, Kevin Killiany, Steven Mohan, Jr., Louisa M. Swann, and Phaedra M. Weldon!

A NEW ERA DAWNS!

Clan Sea Fox aims to be the leading broker of interstellar communications across the Inner Sphere, but the Blackout, the continuing malfunction of the hyperpulse generator network, has stood in their way for far too long.

To fix the broken HPG network, the Sea Foxes enlist the skills of an elite Watch operative, code name Kitefin. Her first priority is to capture the one man with the knowledge to end the Blackout and restore communication between the stars: Tucker Harwell, a genius technician who vanished amid the chaos of Terra's conquest.

Before Kitefin can take Tucker to VoidBreaker Station to begin the work of repairing the vast HPG comms network, she'll have to find him. Unfortunately, she's not the only one looking for him...

FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL...

Beset on all sides, Jiyi Chistu, Khan of Clan Jade Falcon, is struggling to keep his place in the crumbling Jade Falcon Occupation Zone. When Clan Hell's Horses arrive on Sudeten to claim the planet, Jiyi is forced to defend it with everything he has in a battle that could mean the end of his people.

But he cannot just hold his territory. Being cut off from the rest of the Inner Sphere is as much a death for his Clan as annihilation. To take the planets surrounding Sudeten and bring home the errant Jade Falcon warriors he so desperately needs, Jiyi dispatches a unit, including Alexis, a young, idealistic Falcon warrior, to bolster the Clan.

Both Jiyi and Alexis will have to find new ways to adapt to their ever-changing reality, as Alexis learns what it means to be known as a Jade Falcon, and Jiyi is visited by an unexpected Falcon from the past...one who could spell doom for his entire Clan...