Lorix Order

First founded in 2505, the Lorix Order (also known as the Order of Lorix or The Lorix Creed) was a quasi-military, quasi-philosophical society dedicated to the belief that the MechWarrior above all others, soldiers or civilian, is the pinnacle of society, that everyone else should exist to serve (and be defended by) the MechWarrior.

Overview[edit]

Though arguably known more for his gambling and womanizing than his military skills inside and outside the cockpit, Major Kalvar Lorix was one of the first armored commanders in the Capellan Confederation to realize the full potential of the newborn BattleMech. Badly injured when a training exercise on Chesterton went awry, during a lengthy period of surgery and convalescence, Lorix came to formulate the follow six dicta:[1][2][3][4]

  1. The individual citizen has the right to expect the highest degree of professionalism from the officers who decide his fate.
  2. The highest order of warrior and defender is, and forever shall be, the MechWarrior.
  3. MechWarriors are and should remain a special breed unto themselves. They should be accorded the highest honor possible, and in turn should be expected to perform the most outstanding feats of daring in defense of the state and its citizens.
  4. To perform their most important tasks, MechWarriors must be afforded the opportunities to advance their various skills and expertise to the highest possible level. To this end, war is an acceptable way of life because it inevitably contributes to the defense of the state through the increased skill of its defenders.
  5. Once a MechWarrior has reached the summit of his profession, only another MechWarrior has the right to terminate his life. Conversely, in certain cases (such as personal or professional betrayal), the MechWarrior has the right to exact personal retribution without fear of reprisal.
  6. The highest and most important ideal in any MechWarrior's life is loyalty: to the citizenry he protects, to the state that provides, and to the chief executive of the state, who is the MechWarrior's commander-in-chief.

Appearing at the crest of the wave as the Confederation entered the MechWarrior age and resulting military buildup, Kalvar Lorix's creed also complemented Chancellor Hendrik Liao's belief in his responsibility to protect as well as govern his subjects, with the Chancellor ensuring wide level of support for the Lorix Order in the Confederation. In short order the dictum of Kalvar Lorix would become a virtual bible for MechWarriors across hundreds of worlds in all the major realms as Lorix swiftly drew a large number of like-minded follower to his order.[1][2][3][4]

Despite the initial high-level support and wide distribution of his creed, the original incarnation of Kalvar Lorix's order only lasted little over two decades before collapsing thanks to the disreputable and unruly MechWarriors who flocked to his banner frequently dying rashly in combat attempting to fulfill the third and fourth dictum or those who used the fifth and six precepts to resist all attempts at discipline and abused their position being executed for insubordination. Through greatly diminished, the Lorix Order would still see a high degree of usage through the era of the Star League and the early Succession Wars, with nearly every Great House MechWarrior aware of and widely supportive of at least the first and second dictum.[1][2][3][4]

In the Confederation in the late Third Succession War however, one Colonel Hirtza Hikaru adopted a revised version of the Lorix's original tenets to create a revised warrior caste concept after courting direct House Liao support and ultimately put into practice of Kamachi Imarra. Unlike Lorix's original creed, the precepts learned by Warrior House adherents stress loyalty specifically to their Warrior House and the Chancellor directly, rather than the broader and more general terms of Kalvar Lorix.[1][2][3][4]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), pp. 35–36: "History - The Good, the Bad, the Beautiful - Hendrik Liao and the Lorixes - The Lorix Order"
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 House Liao (The Capellan Confederation), p. 65: "Religion and Philosophy - State Philosophies - The Lorix Order"
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Handbook: House Liao, p. 19: "History of the Nation - Genesis - The Time of Tribulation"
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Handbook: House Liao, p. 19: "Society & Culture - Religion and Philosophy - The Lorix Order"

Bibliography[edit]