however, in the MW 3rd edition a Tour of Duty was 2-4 years based on affiliation.
and the Mercenaries' Handbook has a pre-generated term of service as being 4 years.
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however, in the MW 3rd edition a Tour of Duty was 2-4 years based on affiliation.
and the Mercenaries' Handbook has a pre-generated term of service as being 4 years.
Considering the Feudal system, there are a lot of preconditions in this scenario. In order to remain a noble, the family must meet their requirements for military service and that is a perpetual requirement. So there title (Barony) might require them to field a company of 12 mechs. Any additional mechs they have after that could (theoretically) be used however they like. If your a border world, odds are your not going to release an extra mech, because if you lose the land, you lose the title. But if your an interior world, 3 or more jumps behind the lines, it actually could make a lot of sense to send an excess units out to earn work.
As a landed noble, they'd still be bound by their oath of loyalty so they would be restricted on what contracts they could take and who they could work for. Most contracts will have an exclusionary clause. A smart employer will honor that clause, no one wants test the loyalty of sell sword troops by actually testing their national loyalty. I'd hire a FedSun mercenary unit for the Lyran/Draconis border or better yet FWL/Liao border. Better yet, take a contract with your actual liege lord. Earn extra cash and fulfill your oath.
As a landed noble, they'd still be bound by their oath of loyalty so they would be restricted on what contracts they could take and who they could work for. Most contracts will have an exclusionary clause. A smart employer will honor that clause, no one wants test the loyalty of sell sword troops by actually testing their national loyalty. I'd hire a FedSun mercenary unit for the Lyran/Draconis border or better yet FWL/Liao border. Better yet, take a contract with your actual liege lord. Earn extra cash and fulfill your oath.
Keep in mind, there's more ways to fulfill said obligations than sending one's sons and daughters out to personally fight. Those in power don't generally stay in power by leading from the front. And frankly as a sovereign the idea of having a well-trained, veteran corps of subordinates with (very likely) conflicting political ambitions is...not the best thing to encourage.
Very true. The only obligation is to provide the support the military support. How they do so, and who mans it is largely open. One thing to consider though is that mechs represent a very mobile asset. It's a good idea to send someone you can really trust (blood relations being top of the list) to be in control. Otherwise those mobile assets might literally walk off to Galatea or some other mercenary star.
A Time of War came after said editions thus is the current tour of duty. Unfortunately it seems that every new edition changes rules of previous editions. you would think they would try to remain consistent....Its been a problem with battle tech since the after the 1st edition!
I don't see any reason there would be a set tour of duty. Not only would every house have a different term, there would most likely be different terms within different services and different levels. Planetary militia, especially a low investment service like infantry could easily be only a year or so. More high skilled occupations like mechwarrior, aerospace pilot, and even techs the return on investment would require longer terms. For services that have higher footprints like national units, longer terms of service make sense just off of logistics. It might take three or more months just to make it to a duty station.
A tour of duty is a mechanism to determine a characters progression skills learned. I do not think it ever was meant to represent enlistment requirements. As i said earlier enlistment obligations would vary from house to house and depend on your field within the military. The more the military has invested in you the longer your enlistment will be. What that actually is has never to my knowledge been explored by battle tech.
In my campaigns i generally set the minimum enlistment to 6 years for infantry, cavalry, marine, ships crew, pilot aircraft, pilot dropship, Doctor and Technician. 9 years for mechwarrior, aerospace pilot, antimech infantry, special forces, Pilot jumpship, Technician/specialist. 12 years for warship pilot. re-enlistment is generally 3 years and a bonus which varies dependent on field.
In my campaigns i generally set the minimum enlistment to 6 years for infantry, cavalry, marine, ships crew, pilot aircraft, pilot dropship, Doctor and Technician. 9 years for mechwarrior, aerospace pilot, antimech infantry, special forces, Pilot jumpship, Technician/specialist. 12 years for warship pilot. re-enlistment is generally 3 years and a bonus which varies dependent on field.
All Taurian Concordat citizens are required to undertake 4 years national service. Typically the books give no further details 
As someone mentioned already, the Brothers Kell of Kell Hounds fame are related to Katrina Steiner's late husband Duke Arthur Luvon...and it was his bequest of cash after his death that helped found the Kell Hounds.
Grayson Carlyle was ennobled (again with Steiner), and given a planetary landhold.
Archie McCarron of McCarrrons Armored Calvary, started out a merc....basically became a House Unit and was ennobled in by House Liao
Kristen's Krushers founded not only by a Noble, but a member of the Ruling Family of the Free Worlds League Kristen Marik
51st Dark Panzer Jaegers commander, Troy Allen was in line for a Barony on Gienah (Lyran again)
Hsien Hotheads, formed by Roderick Twohy former Duke of Hsien when the planet was captured by House Liao
These are just a few I grabbed really quick without looking in-depth
Grayson Carlyle was ennobled (again with Steiner), and given a planetary landhold.
Archie McCarron of McCarrrons Armored Calvary, started out a merc....basically became a House Unit and was ennobled in by House Liao
Kristen's Krushers founded not only by a Noble, but a member of the Ruling Family of the Free Worlds League Kristen Marik
51st Dark Panzer Jaegers commander, Troy Allen was in line for a Barony on Gienah (Lyran again)
Hsien Hotheads, formed by Roderick Twohy former Duke of Hsien when the planet was captured by House Liao
These are just a few I grabbed really quick without looking in-depth
It's a fairly common practice to offer a landhold and a temporary title of nobility to a mercenary commander in an attempt to lure the unit to settle down long-term.
I had to double check that the 51st DPJ was real, it sounds like a prank name.
I had to double check that the 51st DPJ was real, it sounds like a prank name.
It's worth noting noble heirs, especially to the rulerships of the Great Houses, are generally expected to be MechWarriors who served.
Hanse and Ian Davion (his older brother and predecessor) both served. It's actually a legal requirement to be the heir that you had to serve. Hanse's previous heir before knocking up Melissa Steiner also served.
Katrina Steiner served, though her daughter Melissa does not.
Hanse and Melissa's son Victor served (though his sister Katherine did not and hooo boy, she did do something sort of like ruling).
Candace Liao, at this point the heir apparent to the Capellans, served (and was wounded by her future husband).
Thomas Marik... well, uh... he was never expected to serve, but the question of Thomas Marik is very, very... complicated.
Takashi Kurita, his son Theodore, and HIS son Hohiro, all served.
Hanse and Ian Davion (his older brother and predecessor) both served. It's actually a legal requirement to be the heir that you had to serve. Hanse's previous heir before knocking up Melissa Steiner also served.
Katrina Steiner served, though her daughter Melissa does not.
Hanse and Melissa's son Victor served (though his sister Katherine did not and hooo boy, she did do something sort of like ruling).
Candace Liao, at this point the heir apparent to the Capellans, served (and was wounded by her future husband).
Thomas Marik... well, uh... he was never expected to serve, but the question of Thomas Marik is very, very... complicated.
Takashi Kurita, his son Theodore, and HIS son Hohiro, all served.
As an example, Grayson Carlyle, the CO of the mercenary unit the Gray Death Legion, was given the title of Baron of Glengarry while serving House Steiner. However, when it was believed he violated his contract with House Steiner, his title was stripped. His name and unit was later cleared, see the novel Blood of Heroes for the full story. In any case, it's a example of a Great House granting a mercenary commander a noble title in exchange for his unit's services. It also shows how a Great House can take back the title the moment the CO or the unit goes against the Houses' interests. A noble going mercenary would likely retain their title as long as they did not actively oppose the Great House that granted the title. Simply resigning, unless their landhold was under attack and they refused to defend it, would likely not rise to the level of treason although it would likely be seen as dishonorable. McCarron's Armored Calvary and the Kell Hounds are examples of "mercenary" units, however, in practice they work only for a single Great House. A noble operating such a mercenary unit would likely be fine regarding their status as nobility. In fact, it may be advantageous to the House as it effectively gains another entirely new military formation.
The first and second succession wars were very destructive.
When the 3rd broke out, battles started to become more like a ritual. duels you might say. like Knight duels. You would decide a time and Place, both sides would meet, fight it out, and thereafter the defeated side would get a chance to withdraw in good order.
something like this
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_of_the_Thirty
So, being a mech warrior in 3025 is a noble thing. Therefore, many nobles fight in mechs.
When the 3rd broke out, battles started to become more like a ritual. duels you might say. like Knight duels. You would decide a time and Place, both sides would meet, fight it out, and thereafter the defeated side would get a chance to withdraw in good order.
something like this
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_of_the_Thirty
So, being a mech warrior in 3025 is a noble thing. Therefore, many nobles fight in mechs.
Eh, not so much. The Third Succession War was more a brushfire war. As others have pointed out, think of the proxy wars during the cold war. Small scale units, strained supplies and fighting on the cheap. While there are the occasional duels like the famous one on Mallory's World, most mech engagements are brutal skirmishes with nothing honorable about the victory conditions. See the scenario books for Sorenson's Sabres, Black Widow Company, Mackinnon's Raiders, Galtor, Rolling Thunder. Ironically, the closest you really get to ritual combat is mercenary vs mercenary combat.
Most mechwarriors are not nobles, and most nobles are not mechwarriors. Most nobles meet their military service requirement by supporting a military unit, and most local military units are not mech heavy, instead relying upon conventional forces.
Most mechwarriors are not nobles, and most nobles are not mechwarriors. Most nobles meet their military service requirement by supporting a military unit, and most local military units are not mech heavy, instead relying upon conventional forces.
3rd SW seems like it was more like the Hundred Years War. Not one war exactly, more a long era of campaigns.
In fact, the Kell Hounds have held a contract for the defense of the Arc Royal Codron for so long that the 3145 field manual mentions that they are practically regarded as a Lyran military unit with a fanatical loyalty rating. The Kell Hounds aren't the only merc company thats more or less become a house unit.
"On the eve of the Capellan-St. Ives War, the Cavalry officially joined the CCAF, ending its mercenary status and becoming a regular House unit. Its members were granted full citizenship in the Capellan Confederation."
The Kell Hounds are still technically mercenaries but they're home base has been in Arc Royal for generations.
I believe its more along the lines of the period of the Hundred Year War, a few major battles here and there, but a lot of raiding and destruction (and sometimes destruction just to be dicks)
BTW: Someone who has the Sorenson Sabres and Rolling thunder, hearing them mentioned by anyone else is awesome.
A mercenary unit with strong contacts with a regular customer is still a
mercenary unit.
The ELH take employers for long terms, but they are still the ELH.
Ultimately I see many successful mercenary units becoming regular House units, not necessarily from the "company store" syndrome. If a unit is successful and builds up a long term relationship with an employer, chances are they will get better terms on any contracts than if they jumped ship to a new employer. Also eventually the rewards may extend to more immobile assets such as bases and noble titles with associated land holdings. As time passes, there is the temptation to settle down especially as the individual unit members age and have families.
As I reread the Galtor Campaign last night, I came across the origins of the 12th Vegan Rangers (Which has since been retconned somewhat)...here is the most current info on that Regiment (Founded by a Duke...and Commanded by a Margrave)
"The legendary origins of the Twelfth Vegan Rangers and the Duke of Verde is a romantic tale of Dumasian revenge set at the waning years of the First Succession War. What is on record, however, is that the Rangers were officially formed during the Second Succession War, when the Duke did not want his personal army to be nationalized by the desperate AFFS and converted his troops into a mercenary command. Income from hiring out the force enriched the duke and Verde, allowing the Rangers to expand to four full regiments. In the centuries since, the Rangers have honorably and ably served both the Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth. Perhaps the Rangers’ greatest claim to fame came during the Galtor Campaign, a planetary assault which saw the return of combat on a scale not seen since the Second Succession War. Margrave Sheridan Douglass of Verde led Alpha Regiment into the campaign. Alpha was seemingly everywhere during the fighting, bailing out flagging AFFS troops and mauling Combine forces one after another. The world remained in Davion hands, thanks primarily to the daring, effort, and self-sacrifice of Alpha Regiment. The Fourth Succession War found all four Rangers regiments driving into Capellan territory, and conquest of what became the Sarna March benefited greatly from the skilled Rangers. The unit garrisoned a quartet of the new Federated Commonwealth worlds after the war, ensuring that the Capellans would not easily recover their lost territory. Gamma and Delta Regiments took part in the War of 3039. Both initially succeeded in their first objectives, as the worlds of Nashira and Telos IV fell to them and their Commonwealth allies. However, bureaucratic and logistics failures caused the front-line combat troops to remain in place, putting down riots and guerilla attacks while their security and military police relief forces were seriously delayed. Both regiments soon retreated back to Federated Commonwealth territory when the war swung to the Combine’s favor. Margrave Douglass retired and turned command over to Tom Stancel, the first time in several generations the Rangers were led by someone other than a royal from Verde. By virtue of long service and high respect for the Rangers, Stancel was recognized as a full general by the AFFC, a rare honor for a mercenary command. The four Rangers regiments operate as completely independent commands, except on extremely rare occasions when a truly large force is required to achieve a single objective. Each regiment has a permanently attached fighter wing and tank battalion in addition to the ’Mech forces" - Combat Manual Mercenaries pg. 70
So again we have Nobles leading Mercenary Regiments (This is analogous to the Mercenary Great Companies (Some had Knight's Leading them...and they did sometimes fight their nominal overlords on the field)...and even more in lines with the Condottieri of the Italian Renaissance...most of who were of Italian Noble Families, or because of their skill as Mercenary Commanders became nobles (The Italian City states granted titles to some for the same reason the Successor States do...if theyre Nobles in my lands, they wont attack them)
"The legendary origins of the Twelfth Vegan Rangers and the Duke of Verde is a romantic tale of Dumasian revenge set at the waning years of the First Succession War. What is on record, however, is that the Rangers were officially formed during the Second Succession War, when the Duke did not want his personal army to be nationalized by the desperate AFFS and converted his troops into a mercenary command. Income from hiring out the force enriched the duke and Verde, allowing the Rangers to expand to four full regiments. In the centuries since, the Rangers have honorably and ably served both the Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth. Perhaps the Rangers’ greatest claim to fame came during the Galtor Campaign, a planetary assault which saw the return of combat on a scale not seen since the Second Succession War. Margrave Sheridan Douglass of Verde led Alpha Regiment into the campaign. Alpha was seemingly everywhere during the fighting, bailing out flagging AFFS troops and mauling Combine forces one after another. The world remained in Davion hands, thanks primarily to the daring, effort, and self-sacrifice of Alpha Regiment. The Fourth Succession War found all four Rangers regiments driving into Capellan territory, and conquest of what became the Sarna March benefited greatly from the skilled Rangers. The unit garrisoned a quartet of the new Federated Commonwealth worlds after the war, ensuring that the Capellans would not easily recover their lost territory. Gamma and Delta Regiments took part in the War of 3039. Both initially succeeded in their first objectives, as the worlds of Nashira and Telos IV fell to them and their Commonwealth allies. However, bureaucratic and logistics failures caused the front-line combat troops to remain in place, putting down riots and guerilla attacks while their security and military police relief forces were seriously delayed. Both regiments soon retreated back to Federated Commonwealth territory when the war swung to the Combine’s favor. Margrave Douglass retired and turned command over to Tom Stancel, the first time in several generations the Rangers were led by someone other than a royal from Verde. By virtue of long service and high respect for the Rangers, Stancel was recognized as a full general by the AFFC, a rare honor for a mercenary command. The four Rangers regiments operate as completely independent commands, except on extremely rare occasions when a truly large force is required to achieve a single objective. Each regiment has a permanently attached fighter wing and tank battalion in addition to the ’Mech forces" - Combat Manual Mercenaries pg. 70
So again we have Nobles leading Mercenary Regiments (This is analogous to the Mercenary Great Companies (Some had Knight's Leading them...and they did sometimes fight their nominal overlords on the field)...and even more in lines with the Condottieri of the Italian Renaissance...most of who were of Italian Noble Families, or because of their skill as Mercenary Commanders became nobles (The Italian City states granted titles to some for the same reason the Successor States do...if theyre Nobles in my lands, they wont attack them)