Scott's Game RoomTrial of Birthright: Mourning the Republic
The Republic has fallen… Now what?
Trial of Birthright is the latest BattleTech novel from Michael Ciaravella. It covers the aftermath of Clan Wolf conquering Terra and becoming the ilClan with a focus on the people who have been tasked with forging a new Star League. It is also a book about coming to terms with the loss of the Republic of the Sphere.
Spoiler Warning: This post will contain some spoilers for the book, but I’ll try not to reveal too much of the actual plot.
The novel starts with a prologue that takes place just before Exarch Devlin Stone surrenders to Clans Wolf and Jade Falcon in April 3151. Then the main story spans from 25 May 3151 until 22 November 3151 with all chapters taking place on Terra or within its solar system. The central character it follows is Darren Wolf, a trueborn warrior from Clan Wolf-in-Exile who is fighting on the side of the Republic of the Sphere in the prologue. After his defeat there, he joins Clan Wolf and is then recruited by Noritomo Helmer, Loremaster of the newly formed Star League, to assist with putting an end to the ongoing insurgency that is fighting against Clan forces throughout the solar system.
While Darren and the characters he is working with are primarily focused on putting an end to the guerilla campaign, they also must contend with political maneuvering between the various forces that all are nominally loyal to ilKhan Alaric Ward. The various Khans and saKhans on Terra all want to gain the ilKhan’s favor and expand their own spheres of influence, and Noritomo Helmer must navigate those situations in order to ensure that the freshly-formed Star League finds a place in the new order of things. Darren and others working for the Loremaster are thus forced to deal with these political situations as they go about their mission of trying to convince former Republic soldiers to lay down their arms.
Throughout the novel, I could feel Michael Ciaravella’s love for the Republic of the Sphere. In addition to the main character being a former Republic MechWarrior, the story brings in Mason Dunne, Janella Lakewood, Anastasia Kerensky, Jonah Levin, and Ghost Paladin Emil. Each of these characters is treated with respect and ushered into place for the new era even if that is just a well-deserved retirement for some of them. Even Devlin Stone gets a slight posthumous improvement to his legacy as some of the characters discuss the actions he took in the final days of the Republic and his possible motivations. These characters, and others with ties to the fallen Republic, all grasp with the nation being a thing of the past and figuring out what that means for them going forward. If you are a fan of the Republic of the Sphere, I think you’ll enjoy these parts of the story as you get to look back at what you enjoyed about the Republic and get a glimpse of how some of its spirit might carry forward into BattleTech’s new era.
Clan Wolf and ilKhan Alaric Ward on the other hand are forced to face reality after achieving the dreams of the Clans. Despite Clan Wolf’s rise to being the ilClan, their situation on Terra is precarious with both the insurgency and the other Clans maneuvering to gain advantage over them. Based on the events of this book, Alaric and saKhan Chance Vickers have a difficult time ahead of them.
One thing that surprised me in the book was that Tara Campbell wasn’t featured. As a prominent Republic figure who is now a member of Clan Jade Falcon, it seems like she would have been a natural fit for Noritomo Helmer’s work, but she doesn’t even get a mention in the novel. Hopefully we’ll get some insight into what she is doing instead of being recruited by him in a future story.
Overall, I think Trial of Birthright is a solid story that mixes mourning for a fallen faction with the seeds of what should be an interesting future for the setting. I recommend reading it, especially if you are a fan of the Republic of the Sphere and BattleTech’s Dark Age era.
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