Clan Snow Raven:Canon History

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History:

   * Note: This advances a bit further than I would like time wise, but it is a good start point. - Osiris 

The Snow Raven has ever striven to rise above adversity. Like our namesake that flies above the tundra of Strana Mechty, we have learned to survive. We have persevered, turning weakness into strength and seeking to exploit what others see as a disadvantage. We lack the military might of the Star Adders and the single-minded unity of the Ghost Bears, but we are acknowledged masters in the field of naval warfare and at making the best use of available resources. Others have sought to challenge us, but they lack the history and leadership that give us the strength to resist them.

At the behest of the Grand Council and on the orders of the late ilKhan Lincoln Osis, we have ordered this summary report assembled so that others may better understand the Snow Ravens We have nothing to fear from other Clans, and everything to gain from wider understanding and cooperation between us. -Loremaster Klaus Harper

From it's earliest days and first founders, Clan Snow Raven has risen above every obstical in the path of it's survival. In so doing, we confound our enemies and thrive despite the best efforts of others to bury us.

(2748-2825)

Though the Ravens recognize several founders, we honor Stephen McKenna above all others. A descendant of the great James McKenna, and thus by extension associated with the Cameron family who led the glorious Star League. He was born and raised on the world of Tamar. His family was poor and knew little of thier honorable forefathers and distant cousins, but like all throughout the Inner Sphere, they were shocked at the murder of First Lord Richard Cameron. Stephen McKenna gladly joined Aleksandr Kerensky's war against Amaris the Usurper, and took part in Operation Liberation as on of the SLDF's "high fliers" at the age of nineteen. Made a colonel at 24, McKenna was one of the youngest ever to reach that position, which the Great Father Aleksandr Kerensky personally bestowed on him.

McKenna server as commander of the air wing attached to the SLS Mountbatten and was therefore invited to attend the 14 February 2784 meeting on New Earth in which Kerensky proposed the Exodus. McKenna staunchly backed the plan to leave the Inner Sphere, and was pleased with the massive vote in favor of it. He remained loyal to Kerensky throughout the trials of the Exodus, and retained his rank during the demobilization the followed the SLDF's arrival in the Pentagon Cluster.

As head of the Star League-in-Exile's exploration command, McKenna was away surveying the system that would later be designated Tamaron when Aleksandr Kerensky died. He cut short the mission and returned to the Pentagon in order to support Kerensky's son Nicholas, but found much of the military opposed. At Nicholas's request, McKenna assumed command of an ad hoc flotilla charged with the defense of the Second Exodus evacuation ships. In 2810, Nicholas acknowledged McKenna's contribution by giving him command of Clan Snow Raven. Recognizing McKenna's minimal experience with ground warfare, Nicholas paired him with former commander of the 183rd Royal Mechanized Infantry Division, Joyce Merrell. Despite respecting each other's abilities, however, they could now agree on training and organization procedures for their troops, resulting in such slow progress that the Ravens were the last Clan declared combat-ready when the time came to liberate the warring Pentagon worlds.

Assigned to the liberation of the planet Circe during the Pentagon campaign, the Ravens found themselves in the thick of the fighting. Their primary assignment was to destroy the fortifications along the task force's axis of advance, and their success cost them heavy losses. The most severe was at Constan's Ridge, where the Ravens operated in support of the Not-Named Clan. That engagement resulted in the loss of two BattleMech Stars, almost a quater of the Ravens' strength and half their BattleMech forces. Among the dead was saKhan Merrell. Khan McKenna suspected that the saKhan of the Not-Named Clan - whose advances Merrell had spurned - had deliberately under-represented the opposition in hopes of harming the Snow Raven Clan. Though ilKhan Kerensky officially exonerated the Not-Named, he recognized the rightness of the Snow Ravens' claim and promised that one day justice would be served. That day eventually came, though our Clan found it bittersweet.

The losses on Circe placed the Ravens in a poor position, leaving them little chance of success in the Trials of Possession for the planet's Brian Caches. Unwilling to see his Clan crippled, Khan McKenna chose to reinforce the Ravens in their demonstrated area of expertise: aerospace support. Instead of staging Trials for the 'Mech and vehicle Caches, the Ravens laid claim to several orbital Brian Caches, located in the system's outer reaches, which contained mothballed DropShips, JumpShips, WarShips and aerospace fighters. Concerned with bolstering their 'Mech forces, the other Clans put up only minor resistance.

Among the items recovered were detailed technical documents that allowed the Clan to establish repair and manufacturing facilities for a whole range of naval and aerospace craft. Building orbital ship-yards around the resource-rich world of Lum, the Ravens quickly established a strange hold on naval manufacture and repair technologies. In the years to come, this monopoly would provide the Clan with a powerful bargaining chip, allowing us to rebuild and giving us influence beyond our small size.

The other Clans swiftly recognized the Ravens' aerospace advantage, and consequently gave careful consideration to the Ravens' request for access to a Brian cache located in the territory of the Not-Named Clan. Informed of our foe's unClanlike attitudes by Khan McKenna, the Grand Council chose to support our claim, the result of which no one could have foreseen. In an act of madness, the Not-Named Khan denounced the Founder and the Clans for their decision and declared independence from the rest of the Clans. Fearing for he security of our people, Raven forces on Circe moved against the rebels, but were beaten back by the traitors. The Not-Named Clan then invaded our territory, instigating a barbaric scorched-earth policy as they drove toward our capital of Dehra Dun. There, in an act of unparalleled savagery, they detonated a nuclear weapon, destroying our principal genetic repository and center pf government as well as killing many who had bravely chosen to stand against this despicable enemy's aggression.

(2825-2976)

Slowly we rebuilt, using every tool in our arsenal to maintain control of our own destiny and prevent a repeat of the disasters on Circe. By necessity, our Khans became masters of compromise, learning what the other Clans wanted and making judicious use of this knowledge to ensure our survival. We traded technological expertise and manufacturing capacity in exchange for the materials we needed, while our fleet ensured our security.

The need for canny politicians to handle contacts with the other Clans prompted increasing divisiveness within the Clan, as the debates between Snow Raven Bloodname houses became the political training ground for our warriors. Careers were made and broken on the floor of the Clan Council chamber and in behind-the-scenes dealing, and the infighting only made our Clan stronger.

The established of a Snow Raven colony on the appropriately named world of Hellgate marked the apex of our achievements in the Golden Century. An inhospitable world valued for its location at a jump route nexus and for its sizable germanium deposits, Hellgate made establishing even a token colony a challenge. But we persevered, and by the end of the century had a valuable, if not quite self-sustaining, outpost. It success soon attracted outside interest.

In 2897, Clan Steel Viper staged a Trial of Possession for our agro-domes on Hellgate, which would give them de facto control of the planet if they won. We resisted fiercely, but unfortunately lost. The Vipers' control isolated Hellgate from our other colonies, and meeting the needs of our base there proved impossible. Within two years we were forced to cede the base to the Vipers as well. We have never forgiven them for their underhand tactics in seizing our colony world; even though we eventually regained what was ours, Clan Steel Viper remains our enemy.

Initially, we sought support for our efforts to liberate Hellgate from the Vipers' poisonous clutch. Though our quest proved fruitless, it brought us into the orbit of Tobias Khatib, Khan of Clan Cloud Cobra. For many years the alliance between the Cobras and the Ravens was mutually beneficial, especially in the years following Khatib's ascension to the ilKhanship in 2935. However, within a decade of ascending to that high post, Khan Khatib made clear his selfish goal of advancing his Clan's interests above all others. As luck would have it, in mid-2947 evidence came into our hands suggesting that Khatib had ordered the death of his predecessor, Corian Tchernokov. We had little choice but to present the evidence to the Grand Council, after which Khatib was impeached and executed.

(2977-3047)

In 2977, Clan Snow Raven received an unexpected emissary from Clan Blood Spirit - their ilChi ambassador, who wished to discuss closer ties. Though our two Clans were neighbors on the planet York, we had few contacts with the elusive Blood Spirits. They had made no effort to meddle in our affairs and we saw little need to intervene in theirs. Their offer to trade resources therefore came as a welcome suprise. By the fall of 2979, we had reached an agreement; over the next three decades, we would supply the Blood Spirits with the equivalent of a Galaxy of 'Mechs in exchange for three of their WarShips. To outsiders, this bargain seemed like a gross error, weakening our already inferior ground troops. However, Khan Ewan McCorkell showed great wisdom in this choice. He knew that a return to the Inner Sphere was imminent, but realized that the Snow Ravens could make significant gains by contracting out the Clan's fleet to those who took part in the invasion. This decision showed considerable foresight, as the Snow Ravens did just that in 3050 during Operation Revival. Khan McCorkell, who died fighting Clan Burrock in 2982, is regarded as one of our greatest leaders for his capacity to think in the long term.

Not all Snow Raven leaders proved as stable or farsighted, however. Following our failed challenge for control of the oil fields on the Clan Sea Fox world of Priori in 2983, and in response to the accompanying Sea Fox insults, Khan Liam Howell sought revenge for what he took as a personal affront. Working without the backing of the Clan Council, he unleashed the genetically engineered diamond shark into the oceans of Strana Mechty. This vicious predator caused the near-extinction of the sea fox, prompting uproar in the Clan named after it. The Sea Foxes' senior Khan responded in a way Khan Howell had not expected; he petitioned the Grand Council to rename his Clan the Diamond Sharks.

Outraged, Howell carelessly let slip that he had instigated the death of the Sea Fox, a grave miscalculation for which he is still reviled by our Clan. The Snow Raven saKhan, Niamh Sukhanov, immediately challenged Howell to a Circle of Equals, killing him and assuming his place. Despite her disgust at Howell's actions, she voted against allowing the Sea Foxes to change their name. As a matter of honor, the Ravens stood against the Foxes in the Trial of Refusal the Foxes demanded upon losing the vote. Unfortunately, the Snow Raven troops were swiftly defeated. Acknowledging our opponent's victory, saKhan Sukhanov sought rapprochement with the Clan that now called itself Diamond Shark, but was rebuffed. Ever since then, the Sharks have sought to best us in commerce, their field of expertise. For our part, we have accepted their anger with good grace and have taken no action against them. Indeed, we have done everything in our power to aid the Diamond Sharks by way of compensation for Khan Howell's misdeed.

During the decades that followed, Clan Snow Raven walked a fine line between the Crusader and Warden camps. The pro-invasion stance of the Crusaders presented many opportunities, but was impractical for a Clan of our size and military specialization. Unlike many other Clans, the Snow Ravens refused to underestimate the abilities of the Inner Sphere military. We therefore backed th Clan Wolf-sponsored "Dragoon Compromise" of 3000, aiding in the assembly of the fleet that would carry the Clans' reconnaissance mission to the Inner Sphere. However, we could not claim wholehearted support of the Warden cause. Our leaders believed that the Wardens' policy of isolation would ultimately lead to stagnation and complacency, surely not part of Kerensky's vision for the Clans. Despite our misgivings, the need to balance the Crusaders' undue haste for invasion forced Clan Snow Raven to side with the Wardens in many Grand Council decisions.