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Inner Sphere Loyalist Units: What Motivates You?


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#21 Bubblewhip

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Posted 04 June 2015 - 08:47 PM

View PostPereset, on 04 June 2015 - 07:21 PM, said:

..

If I have offended anyone I apologize, it was not my intention.
It is from my true feelings I have the greatest respect for anyone that is a loyalist on any faction because I think they have a sense of identity despite what the game does not provide.

But part of the identity that comes from my experience in the Clans, does that identity exist without the strict form of rituals or alternate language?

It seems it does from the responses I have from the few people. I want to know why Liao loyalists are Liao loyalists despite being the easy bad guys. Stoneblade gave a great explanation on why and I can understand on his stand point.

You Davions also seem to feel strongly about the history and politics of House Davion as well. I thought I shared those ideas of personal freedom and prosperity that Davion-Steiner shared, but the politics and aristocracy always bothered me.

As to answer your question about the reasons why I am in the clans and my loyalty.

So there is this post I made about my experience into CGBI.

As I said in that post I joined and pledged my loyalty because it was a team worth losing with, because of the impressive effort, dedication and initiative these members have made for me.

But I guess more proof is needed?
(Following picture is Furry) Link

That commissioned piece of work was over $60. My time, and my feelings towards joining the clan and passing my Trial, i felt it was important to have some piece that documented my adoption and a point of history that I can keep forever.

They could swap out clan mechs for IS and IS for clan and I would still be a Ghost Bear at heart.

Does that answer your question?

#22 Fusea

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Posted 04 June 2015 - 09:01 PM

View PostIraqiWalker, on 04 June 2015 - 07:39 PM, said:


I thought Liao had the highest literacy rate (90% if I'm not mistaken)


As I understand it, that is the literacy rate for Capellan 'citizens.' Since not everyone is a citizen, they don't count. In fact, as of the last time I played mechwarrior, Capellan was one of the few affiliations that could skip early stages, going from early child hood directly to real life. Basically you might get to secondary school, but you might just get a job instead. Canopus on the other hand has mandatory military enlistment. So basically you can roll an illiterate Capellan, but not a Canopian.

#23 Koshirou

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Posted 04 June 2015 - 10:51 PM

View PostBubblewhip, on 04 June 2015 - 06:17 PM, said:

Let me be clear about this. The game and the fiction is exactly that, a fiction. But the community, the identity, culture, and the people you are with are very much real.


Quote

We are people who identify with the spirit of the clan way of life, and its underlying message of to be someone who is constantly challenged, valued on their merits, respects others with emotional spirit, value honesty, honor, and chivalry, as well as having a sense of tradition.

If it seems that we are speaking with little irony is because we value that culture and the people who feel the same way. Without it, there is no identity.

Posted Image


Quote

That is why I am asking this because I want to know if this sense of cultural identity exists in the IS.

I certainly hope not. That would be rather sad.

#24 Famyn

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 12:28 AM

Been playing the table top game since the old white rule book days (mid 80's for a reference point) and my gaming group has almost always played mercenary forces, that war we could pick and choose our preferred houses and try to make some $$$ :D

#25 Wikikomoto

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 12:42 AM

i've always been a house marik fan. a sense of duty, a strong military. believable government. why choose another faction?

#26 Pereset

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 08:50 AM

View PostFusea, on 04 June 2015 - 07:29 PM, said:

As a long time merc, it's annoying that everyone thinks we all go 'shits hit the fan, and away I go.' There are no good merc units that do that. Yes there are merc units that do engage in those antics, but they don't tend to last very long. Even funnier, there are House units that engage in those antics.

Let me explain that as a mercenary, if I take a contract somewhere, it's because I want to be there. It's the house militaries that get sent places they would rather not be.

Also, they didn't have a Magistracy of Canopus option. Highest rate of literacy in the Inner Sphere and we're in the periphery! Also one of the better economies... because of sex tourism. Not sure if it's a win, but its a thing!


Wait a minute, Fusea.

Are you telling me that in the Tukayyid CW, you didn't become Clan?

I don't remember seeing you with us fighting against the clan. In fact, in the Tukayyid CW, there ALWAYS seemed to be PLENTY of clanners ready in the Attack que. Were you fighting with us "outnumbered" Inner Sphere House units against the clan? I saw Praetorian Legion all decked out in Clan contracts, fighting for Clan distinction, and it sure wasn't for glory. They were after the nice rewards that PGI put up for anyone who took the contract.

That is the "we all go 'shits hit the fan, and away I go'" that I'm talkin' about.

How would I know this? I was in an Inner Sphere House defender group that was fighting against a Praetorian Legion team that was all Clan Ghost Bear. This is the same Praetorian Legion that was Davion two weeks before, and Marik, just prior to that. Praetorian Legion has been around since they created their charter in December of 2013, of everyone on this forum, I should know. I don't know who the largest mercenary unit is, but I'm pretty sure that Praetorian Legion is one of them, if not the largest.

I'm with Davion out of loyalty and perseverance, regardless of how PGI tries to stack the cards in the game. ()Asaru, I'm with ya, man. Just give me enough warning, and I'll forego the work on my website for a few matches). Man, I'm so worked up, I gotta post this link from our past...



Look, there is a reason why you decided to become a mercenary, and I really don't see any kind of loyalty there, except to yourself. Oh...the Kurita would refer to you as "ronin". I hope that you understand, that is NOT a compliment.

But I gotta say this, PGI has done an outstanding job of manipulating the game with their rewards system. It is just too bad that they are not bolstering rewards for Inner Sphere houses. But then, they said that they will not follow canon. But, I will fight the good fight, the best that I can, STICK to my house, and DEFEND its honor. (Now, if I can JUST get a nice rig, capable of handling the high-end graphics like the rest of you...)

Edited by Pereset, 05 June 2015 - 08:56 AM.


#27 Alec Braca

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 03:19 PM

I am a long time fan of Battletech and Mechwarrior and I always liked the FRR. I am with the 1st Hussar Remnants, a loyalist unit within said faction. I'll just list off a few reasons as to why I have not left this new nation.

FRR

1. Scandinavian culture / mythology (its my heritage and a hobby :P)
2. New nation - It broke away from the DC after a couple hundred years of on/off oppression.
3. The logo is awesome.
4. It's a republic.
5. The FRR and its people are a proud and determined bunch who will keep fighting no matter the odds.
6. Tor Miraborg - Badass and father of Tyra
Tyra Miraborg - Bought time for the Elected Prince to escape during the Clan Invasion / killed ilKhan Leo Showers, bought time for the IS to recover and prepare for the next Clan wave. Fought Ghost Bears on Thule (Homeworld of the 1stH)
Christian Mansdottir - is elected to be the first "First Lord of the Star League (reborn)"
Haakon Magnusson - FRR freedom fighter and first Elected Prince.
Ragnar Magnusson - Haakon's son. Was captured by Clan Ghost Bear / eventually made saKhan.
7. They just want to do their own thing!
8. I hate to admit it but....if there was any Clan I would have absorb the FRR and save it from the IS and Jihad in the later years, it would have to be the Ghost Bears. Luckily, it was the Ghost Bears. Their sense of family and cooperation resonate with the FRR and myself. The Ghost Bears are a better Clan in that they look out for their lower caste members and are Wardens. They basically saved us, then gave us a home.

1st Hussar Remnants

1. First real IS house unit to engage the Clans.
2. Gave Ghost Bear forces a bloody nose.
3. 1st gets reformed into the "1st Hussars Cluster - Tundra Galaxy" EVENTUALLY...WE'RE BACK!!
4. Our (lore) CO Överste Joannie Swigard was captured by then saKhan of Ghost Bear as a bondsman and eventually became a Star Captain in the 50th Striker Cluster / Alpha Galaxy / The Black Bears.
5. (REAL) I have fun and am with a good group of people in a friendly open unit in a friendly open faction.
6. We will give a home to anyone who wants to join and is respectful, if not, we'll kick your ass to the curb. We do not tolerate it.

I hope you enjoyed my rant.

Edited by Alec Braca, 05 June 2015 - 04:46 PM.


#28 Bubblewhip

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 05:02 PM

View PostPereset, on 05 June 2015 - 08:50 AM, said:


Wait a minute, Fusea.

Are you telling me that in the Tukayyid CW, you didn't become Clan?

Look, there is a reason why you decided to become a mercenary, and I really don't see any kind of loyalty there, except to yourself. Oh...the Kurita would refer to you as "ronin". I hope that you understand, that is NOT a compliment.

But I gotta say this, PGI has done an outstanding job of manipulating the game with their rewards system. It is just too bad that they are not bolstering rewards for Inner Sphere houses. But then, they said that they will not follow canon. But, I will fight the good fight, the best that I can, STICK to my house, and DEFEND its honor. (Now, if I can JUST get a nice rig, capable of handling the high-end graphics like the rest of you...)


I was former Davion because I thought I believed in its values of personal freedom, but fighting for the faction left me feeling empty, and without a sense of community that I felt I belonged to.

I entered into the clans, not a mercenary clan unit but a loyalist clan unit because I wanted to understand what attracts people to the Clan culture, to do things like trials, rituals, and saying "Seyla" at the end of speeches.

I wanted learn and see what the clan culture was about from first hand to understand it.

What I got was finally a sense of community and identity i was looking for.

I do not understand why you insist I am a mercenary. I am a mechwarrior for Clan Ghost Bear International. I took an Oath to uphold the honor and wear the uniform of Clan Ghost Bears until they are dust and memory.

Regardless you have strong feelings towards your faction and I respect that and your unit is lucky to have some as passionate as you are, but I am not that enemy you are speaking of.

#29 Capp

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Posted 05 June 2015 - 05:55 PM

View PostKoshirou, on 04 June 2015 - 07:03 AM, said:

I've had this kind of explanation before, but I consider the concept of "oh, it's a ridiculous caricature in-universe, too" to be nothing more than an excuse.
In the case of the DC, it is especially glaring that its presentation is not a result of extrapolating a fictional culture from one really big fan of feudal Japan, but of the author simply copying a distorted picture of WW2-era (and definitely not so feudal) Japan from whatever American books on the subject he used as a resource - to the point where some passages where directly copy/pasted (well in 1985 probably not really, but you get what I mean...) from books I know and where he forgot to replace "Emperor" with "Coordinator" in at least one place...

But: The "in-universe" excuse does work if you approach it from a different angle - that the original housebook was an in-universe source written by an allegedly neutral, but actually less than sympathetic (and probably also less well-informed than they claimed) outsider, namely a Comstar official.

P.S.: The recent HB:HK made some changes to mellow out some of the more extreme aspects, but it has mostly repeated the older stuff and introduced its own problems - such as the above


It's possible. Look what happened when someone tried to make a holovid about the 1st Somerset Strikers. ;)

#30 Pereset

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 08:55 AM

View PostBubblewhip, on 05 June 2015 - 05:02 PM, said:


I was former Davion because I thought I believed in its values of personal freedom, but fighting for the faction left me feeling empty, and without a sense of community that I felt I belonged to.

I entered into the clans, not a mercenary clan unit but a loyalist clan unit because I wanted to understand what attracts people to the Clan culture, to do things like trials, rituals, and saying "Seyla" at the end of speeches.

I wanted learn and see what the clan culture was about from first hand to understand it.

What I got was finally a sense of community and identity i was looking for.

I do not understand why you insist I am a mercenary. I am a mechwarrior for Clan Ghost Bear International. I took an Oath to uphold the honor and wear the uniform of Clan Ghost Bears until they are dust and memory.

Regardless you have strong feelings towards your faction and I respect that and your unit is lucky to have some as passionate as you are, but I am not that enemy you are speaking of.


Okay Bubble,

I can see where you are coming from, now. Be advised that I was addressing a post from Fusea, not questioning your newfound loyalty.

I hope that your sense of community remains for a while.

Because MMO's are able to be manipulated through rewards systems and character/product modifications, I tend to look at these games with reservations. Many of the people you are playing with, are very probably MMO veterans (Eve, Wow, EQ, SWG, etc.), so their resilience in staying with the game may be fickle, at best. I am sure they are very good people, but I am a realist, when it comes to game loyalty.

My passion is derived from the willingness to play MWO.

I was an ardent fan of the board game, graduated to the computer game releases, then to Virtual World (shelling out 15 dollars a match), playing from Tokyo to San Diego. I've been playing for many years, and never really identified with any faction. But, since joining DRHG, I have always enjoyed playing with people in HHOD, C4, and other Davion units. I built teams in the RL military for a living for almost 7 years. I served in RL for 20 years. Yet, in retrospect, though I worked with everyone as a team player, I never really socialized with them. I was more of a lone wolf off the ship, finding my own adventures instead.

Let me close by saying that I congratulate you on finding where you fit in the game, and hope that you continue to discover more rewards in sticking to what you have found.

Pereset Takami, Marshall
Armchair Desk Jockey B)

#31 Richard Hazen

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 09:19 AM

I want to dedicate myself to a faction, atm that faction is Marik, I figured it was more open culturally, not one of the favoured factions. However the fact it's so far from the front lines is taking a toll, I don't feel like I'm actually fighting for anything.

#32 IraqiWalker

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 02:04 PM

View PostDeimos Alpha, on 06 June 2015 - 09:19 AM, said:

I want to dedicate myself to a faction, atm that faction is Marik, I figured it was more open culturally, not one of the favoured factions. However the fact it's so far from the front lines is taking a toll, I don't feel like I'm actually fighting for anything.

Deimos, you should probably get on the Marik teamspeak. Also, when asked what they are fighting for, most Marik pilots responded with "Space Bacon". Our reporters are still puzzeled at the answer, and wonder if the FWL has discovered a spacebourne source of food.

#33 Richard Hazen

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Posted 06 June 2015 - 02:15 PM

View PostIraqiWalker, on 06 June 2015 - 02:04 PM, said:

Deimos, you should probably get on the Marik teamspeak. Also, when asked what they are fighting for, most Marik pilots responded with "Space Bacon". Our reporters are still puzzeled at the answer, and wonder if the FWL has discovered a spacebourne source of food.

Yeah I do get on, they are a great bunch :)

#34 Fusea

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Posted 08 June 2015 - 11:48 PM

View PostPereset, on 05 June 2015 - 08:50 AM, said:


Wait a minute, Fusea.

Are you telling me that in the Tukayyid CW, you didn't become Clan?

I don't remember seeing you with us fighting against the clan.


You didn't see me fighting on either side. I blew up my computer a year or so ago and haven't been able to play at all. I jumped into a couple games with my new machine, but now I don't remember how to play, so I haven't been on much. Even then, the new machine only came after the cw event wrapped up. In the mean time, I had a laptop with windows xp and blistering 3/4 of a gig of ram on a pentium M processor with no graphics card. I couldn't get the game installed, let alone run it.

Back in game, heres the thing about mercs, all the cowards are running garrison duty in the arse end of nowhere, because they can. All the greedy mercs are working for corporations doing guard duty at facilities because the pay is good and the work is easy, again, because they can. All the ones who jump contract are banned, you can find them squabbling in the periphery for parts. That just leaves the smart mercs and the dedicate mercs. I like to think of myself as somewhere between the 2. I'm smart enough to avoid the contracts that are suicied, and dedicated enough to finish out the rest. I don't jump from house to the next because I rarely work for the houses. Each house has it's own foibles that make them a bad option, at the top and working clockwise,

The Free Resalwhateverthefuckicantpronounceitanyway: They hate mercs, pay like ass with terrible contract conditions and like setting up poorly supported situations expecting the mercs to succeed where they know their own forces would fail so they can ***** loudly and hate mercs more. Thanks but no, If I know you're planning to hang me out to dry to justify a political view, I'll take a pass.

The Draconis Combine: Hates mercs, pays pretty badly, but tends to be fair in other contract areas. But routinely attempts to use the 'company store' to make mercs into de facto house units. I value my freedom, so anything that isn't a short term contract, I'll pass.

The Federated Suns: Hey the golden boys! They pay pretty well, have decent contracts but often have complicated schemes that work well for them, but leave the mercs to twist in the wind with no support. If the contract is solo work, sure. If I'm supporting a regular unit, I'll pass.

House Liao: Are wildly unpredictable, they like some mercs, hate others, pay well, pay like ass and everything inbetween. However, the insanity of their ruling family infects their whole military so be careful. Don't often take their contracts because I don't need that level of crazy.

House Marik. I love them, sadly can't take any of their contracts because by the time it's over they have a new regime and decided I'm a war criminal. Pass.

House Steiner: They quite like mercs and pay very well, but if there's running to be done, or incompetence to be had, it's the Steiner house units. A social general is always a bad idea. Generally take a pass.

Typically the best contracts for minor merc units are planetary governments and minor houses. They rarely have the massive egos or budgets of the major governments and the contracts tend to be more straight foward.

And of course there are contracts that a given merc unit won't accept. Personally, I don't like the idea of counter insurgency, first, if you government is so corrupt that your own people don't like you, why would I want to help prop you up?

All of this means that a merc is more likely to actually want to be deployed where he is with the assignment he has. Sure that isn't always the case, but variety is the spice of life right?

So if you want to drop with an LRM support merc, lemme know. I like what I do and I don't have any ego making me a glory hound. But I'm comedically out of practice, so don't expect great things.

#35 buryingbeetle

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Posted 14 June 2015 - 10:17 AM

I typed a longer version of this but I wanted to keep it short.

I picked House Liao because I look at the lore, invasions and stuff and you realize what is going on. Even though davion propaganda potrays themselves as "good" lets look at the facts:


Fed-Com
They started the 4th succession war a war by all accounts was a war of conquest.
They invaded house liao

House Liao is a survivalist state. However the "Best of the best" rise to the top. Its a pure meritocracy with exceptions for the extremely wealthy. It survives purely out of spite. That's my kind of people.

#36 nehebkau

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Posted 15 June 2015 - 05:17 AM

Crushing our enemy
Seeing them driven before us
Hearing the lamentations of their women.

#37 Kifferson von doober

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Posted 15 June 2015 - 05:28 AM

Definitely the space bacon :)

#38 -Vompo-

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Posted 17 June 2015 - 01:55 AM

Never been in a different faction and never had to even think which faction to pick. FRR is where I belong.

#39 Krigherren

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Posted 17 June 2015 - 02:30 AM

View PostVompoVompatti, on 17 June 2015 - 01:55 AM, said:

Never been in a different faction and never had to even think which faction to pick. FRR is where I belong.


I'm right there beside you, Vompo!

#40 Araevin Teshurr

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Posted 18 June 2015 - 12:16 PM

I'm pretty sure Innershpere are a long lost tribe of bear hunters!





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