Miyogi Kurita

Miyogi Kurita
Character Profile
Born 2796[1]
Died 2890[1]
Affiliation House Kurita
Position Coordinator of Worlds
Profession Noble
Parents Zabu Kurita (father)[1]
Siblings Yoguchi Kurita[1]
Roweena Kurita[1]
Children Dira Kurita[1]
Rho Kurita[1]
Miran Kurita[1]
Jon Kurita[1]


History[edit]

Miyogi Kurita was the Coordinator of the Draconis Combine during the early years of the Third Succession War.

In response for his brother being killed by a lowly female from the LCAF, he ordered the DCMS to plan an attack on Hesperus II to destroy the BattleMech factories there. That mission ended being the Battle of Hesperus.[2]

The commanding Kurita general considered the Hesperus strike to be a marginal victory, because they had managed to destroy one BattleMech assembly line. While the DCMS lost about 50 percent of its ground troops, the Commonwealth lost at least as many troops, including two veteran 'Mech regiments. Both sides also lost most of their few remaining WarShips. The Commonwealth's awesome LCS Invincible, possibly the last capital WarShip in existence in the Inner Sphere when it failed to return from Hesperus II because its drive failed in mid-jump.

Coordinator Miyogi Kurita was a great believer in studying his opponents, so he greatly expanded his agencies (ISF mostly) for gathering intelligence on the other Successor States. He also spent considerable time talking with ComStar representatives hoping they would help him gain a clear picture of the nature and motivations of the other powers in the Inner Sphere.[3]

He started to plan an offensive on both Lyran and Davion fronts, and by late 2854 DCMS attacked. The main thrust of the Steiner half of the offensive centered on an axis created by the Lyran worlds of Dehgolan and Kelenfold while the offensive axis on the Federated Suns border was Rochester-Saunemin.[3]

Though his operation had a good start in the Lyran front with the winning of several planets and was adequate in the Davion front,[4] by 2862 the Arm of the Dragon was experiencing real difficulties. With aggressive campaigns on both borders, the supply lines had become too long and entangled.[5]

When the generals of the DCMS went to Coordinator Miyogi and humbly asked that he either stop the offensive or slow it down, he agreed. With this, the Second Succession War came to an end.[5]

From Miyogi's Kurita point of view, he considered House Kurita had come out on top again after the war, with gains along both fronts. On the Commonwealth border, they had managed to pick up seven planets. Along the Davion border, they had succeeded in putting the Davion offensive to a halt and in reclaiming all their worlds, and also managed to win three planets.[5]

By late 2863 Miyogi was finally fully aware of the power her sister Roweena had amassed, and her influence with the ISF. He decided to form an internal group formed by a small, elite squad, headed by Rajiv Sulevani to conduct a secret investigation within ISF's organization.[6][7]

That initiated a Shadow War within ISF. Though Miyogi and Roweena kept up a semblance of cordiality during this time, both were struggling behind the scenes to get the upper hand. In a major escalation of the conflict, Roweena attempted to expand the powers of the PRE by absorbing a vital section of the DCMS Procurement Department. This would have forced the entire military to funnel their supply requests through the PRE.[7]

Taragi Kurita, nephew to both Kurita family members, was serving as an aide to a general on the DCMS's High Command as both sides attempted to secure the favor of the Combine's military commanders to win the war.[8][9]

Sensing a chance to increase his power and prestige, in separate audiences with both Miyogi and Roweena, Taragi attempted to peddle his supposed influence with the neutral generals of the High Command to support their respective faction in the Shadow War. Despite his insistence, both knew he was not even allowed to speak at the High Command Meetings, with Roweena laughing in his face and Miyogi half-heartedly agreeing to promote him if he succeeded. Neither realized how wily Taragi was however. When the High Command finally met to decide which Kurita to back, Taragi rose and strode to the front of the room, removing from beneath his clothing the Dragon Medallion signifying his status as a legitimate member of the Kurita line. Holding up the medallion as if it was a holy symbol and shocking the murmuring generals into silence, Taragi launched into impassioned hour-long speech extolling the virtues of Miyogi and characterizing Roweena as a kind of witch, before returning to his seat. Swayed by Taragi's speech, the High Command voted unanimously in favor of Miyogi, with the Roweena-loyal ISF and the People's Reconstruction Effort eliminated in short order. As he had promised, Miyogi prompted Taragi to the rank of General, becoming one of his uncle's most trusted advisers. Among Taragi's first pieces of advice was to imprison rather execute Roweena for fear it would complicate rooting out those ISF agents still loyal to her, a decision that would ultimately benefit Taragi in future.[9]

Miyogi had then PRE dismantled, and even the PRE University on Ashio was destroyed, and though many blamed the pro-Roweena ISF for setting fire to the Grand Library, the surrounding villagers whispered among themselves that it was agents loyal to Miyogi who had started the blaze.[9]

In 2866 he had DCMS forces to make another push against the Steiner planets which was a success, though some issues in the Davion front did not make this end as full success.[10]

Miyogi sent Taragi Kurita to the Davion front to act as chief adviser to the Warlords of the Galedon, Benjamin and Dieron Military Districts. Delighted in his new position as the Coordinator's official representative and eager to test his abilities and cunning, Taragi quickly embroiled himself in the politics between the three Warlords and set about manipulating the procurement systems along the Davion front.[8]

In short order he had secretly pitted each of the three Warlords against the others and the supply situation was hopelessly snarled and bottle-necked, with the Federated Suns quickly taking advantage of the weakness to seize three worlds as the three Warlords each blamed the other for the problems, while a number of operation's directed by Taragi were suspiciously successful. By 2885 the Davion forces had struck the major supply depots on Towne, Mara, New Ivaarsen and Rowe, largely thanks to Taragi's manipulations reducing the defenses, prompting him to travel to Luthien to personally report to the Coordinator on the incompetence of the three commanding generals on the Davion front. Careful to avoid blaming anyone specifically, Taragi nevertheless made it clear that he believed the Davion front should be commanded by a single general. Miyogi thanked Taragi for his report and openly agreed with Taragi's idea of a single commander. However where Taragi had expected that that he would be named, Miyogi had already selected his son, Jon Kurita, for the post.[8]

Unknown to Miyogi, this enraged Taragi, who started a secret campaign against his son and ensured that finally made him look so bad that the DCMS high command didn't want him as single commander of the Davion front.[11]

Miyogi attempted to rally his own support in the High Command to save his son, but court rumors that the Coordinator was sending an offer of alliance to the Federated Suns (in truth a smear campaign waged by Roweena's friends within the ISF) scuttled these efforts. The final act was played out by Captain Hideyoshi Toyama in 2890, a fanatical young officer in the Third Sword of Light who was desperate to avenge his unit's humiliation on Robinson. With a large explosive device strapped to his chest, Toyama succeeded in entering the Imperial Palace when the Coordinator was seeing petitioners in the Audience Hall, killing 30 people including himself and Miyogi Kurita. When word of the assassination reached the Davion front, Taragi had his ISF contacts arrest Jon Kurita, executing him for negligence and treason after a mock trial. With the death of Miyogi's only male child, Taragi became Coordinator of the Draconis Combine unchallenged.[11][12]

Quotes[edit]

My brother was killed by a slut of a Steiner spy. I refuse to rest unit I have struck and taken something infinitely dear to the Steiner family.
  — Coordinator Miyogi Kurita, in his eulogy of Yoguchi Kurita, 2850[13]
I don't care how worn the troops are. I tell you that both our enemies are on the verge collapse. They can be ours if we apply ourselves and call upon that superiority that makes us unique.
  — Coordinator Miyogi Kurita, in response to a request to the High Command to slow the Marathon Offensive[14]
After a long chase, some predators often ease up and pretend to be tired, hoping to convince their prey that it can escape. In that moment exhaustion, the prey's concentration may lapse. Just at the moment, the predator puts on a sudden burst of speed and takes his victim totally by surprise.
  — Coordinator Miyogi Kurita, in an address to the graduating class of the Sun Zhang Academy, 2866[15]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), foldout: "The Draconis Combine's Line of Succession and Partial Kurita Family Tree"
  2. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), pp. 68–70: "Divine Retribution"
  3. 3.0 3.1 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 70: "The Marathon Offensive"
  4. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 71: "Early Successes"
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 71: "Slow Down"
  6. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 72: "The Third Succession War"
  7. 7.0 7.1 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 72: "Shadow War"
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), pp. 75–76: "The Third Succession War - Military Hot Spots - Good Plan, Unexpected End"
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), pp. 72–73: "The Third Succession War - Shadow War"
  10. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 74: "Is War the Natural State of Man?"
  11. 11.0 11.1 House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), pp. 76–77: "The Third Succession War - The Rise of Taragi"
  12. History of the Inner Sphere
  13. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 68: "Divine Retribution"
  14. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 70: "The Marathon Offensive"
  15. House Kurita (The Draconis Combine), p. 72: "The Third Succession War"

Bibliography[edit]