Objective Raids

ObjectiveRaids.jpg
Objective Raids
Product information
Type Sourcebook
Development Mike Nystul
Sam Lewis
Donna Ippolito (Senior Editor)
Sharon Turner Mulvihill (Assistant Editor)
Primary writing Jeffrey Layton
Pages 192
Cover Artwork David Martin (Art)
James Nelson (Design)
Illustrations Earl Geier
Rick Harris
Denis Nelson
Tony Szczudlo
Publication information
Publisher FASA
Product code 1665
First published 1992
ISBN-10 1555601731
ISBN-13 978-1555601737
MSRP $15.00
Content
Era Clan Invasion era
Timeline 3054


Description[edit]

Written from the perspective of the Com Guards as a "how to" guide on objective raids, the Objective Raids book details the most notable worlds of military and industrial importance in the Inner Sphere, be it Successor State or Clan, along with troop deployments circa 3054. The real meat of the book is the section covering the various manufacturers of each BattleMech, aerospace fighter, combat vehicle, DropShip, JumpShip, and almost every military component, weapon or piece of battlefield equipment produced in the Inner Sphere at that time. Among the manufacturing details, a number of new variants of existing designs are also briefly described.

The book gained notoriety for being inaccurate and containing a number of errors, oversights and omissions. For example, it curiously fails to mention Tikonov as a major industrial center and (wrongly) claims that the Taurian Concordat produces the Rommel tank.
(See also Objective Raids#Notes and Objective Raids#Canonicity below)

From the back cover[edit]

"The universe contains endless opportunities for those who have the guts to grab hold of their destiny."
"Anything you will ever want or need is there for the taking. All you need to know is where it is."
Vance Rezak, notorious border pirate

Objective Raids is an indispensable resource for BattleTech and MechWarrior players, providing current listings of units and industries on worlds along the border of the Clan occupation zone.
A discussion of the tactics for conducting raids, two representative industrial floor plans, and a reference guide for locating the manufacturing site of any BattleMech, vehicle, aerospace fighter or component is also included.

Canonicity[edit]

Line Developer Herbert A. Beas II once made a statement to the effect that certain products including this one are considered "secondary sources" by the writers staff because of their numerous errors, but this should not be construed to mean they are not canonical. It is standard procedure in cases of conflicting information to treat later publications as accurate over earlier publications.

And, if Sarna used the Luthien scenario pack as a resource there, the fact is, that book proved to be so riddled with errors, it--like First Edition Periphery and Objective Raids--is now seen by our staff as a "secondary source": Canon only in areas where it does not clash with other canon.
  — Herbert A. Beas, BattleTech Line Developer, 08 Jul 2012

Content[edit]

  • Industries
  • Border Worlds
  • The Clan Front
    • Federated Commonwealth
    • Jade Falcon/Steel Viper Occupation Zone
    • Wolf Occupation Zone
    • Ghost Bear Occupation Zone
    • Smoke Jaguar/Nova Cat Occupation Zone
  • Federated Commonwealth
  • Draconis Combine
  • The Clans
  • Free Worlds League
  • Capellan Confederation
  • St. Ives Compact
  • Periphery States
  • Typical Industrial Set-ups
  • Product Index
  • Map of the Federated Commonwealth

Author comments[edit]

In 2011, author Jeffrey Layton registered on the CBT Forum and posted some behind-the-scenes information about the production of this book. According to his postings,

  • Tikonov was covered in the original manuscript and apparently lost to an oversight, either when Layton had friends type up his notes to submit them to FASA digitally instead of typewritten submissions, or during editing;
  • his original notes aimed at providing a Succession Wars era sourcebook set for around 3025, but Sam Lewis "said "but I'm afraid you're going to have to revise your draft. We're making a big change to the BattleTech setting right now." Of course, the change was the Clan invasion."

Notes[edit]