The Ruins of Power

The Ruins of Power.jpg
The Ruins of Power
Product information
Type Novel
Author Robert E. Vardeman
Pages 295
Cover Artwork Ray Lundgren
Publication information
Publisher Roc Books
First published 1 April 2003
ISBN-10 0451459288
ISBN-13 978-0451459282
Content
Era Dark Age era
Timeline 3 April - 12 May 3133
Series MechWarrior: Dark Age Novels
Preceded by A Call to Arms
Followed by A Silence in the Heavens
(The Proving Grounds trilogy)

The Ruins of Power, by Robert E. Vardeman, is the third novel in the MechWarrior: Dark Age series. It was first published in April 2003 by Roc Books and was later republished in April 2021 by Catalyst Game Labs as a BattleTech Legends title.

From the back cover[edit]

The destruction of the interplanetary communications net has isolated planets across The Republic of the Sphere. On the world of Mirach, a widening schism in the military between those who would remain loyal to The Republic and those who would break away threatens the peace and prosperity that have lasted for generations...

Once a formidable MechWarrior, Mirach governor Sergio Ortega now believes that diplomacy will win the day. His sons, Dale and Austin, are also stalwarts of The Republic and aspiring MechWarriors. Against growing civil unrest, they urge a military show of force before events spiral out of control. But Mirach has no military equipment up to BattleMech status. And the pacifistic governor is slashing military spending.

Marta Kinsolving's Mirach Business Association has been converting IndustrialMechs into fighting machines. After putting down a civil uprising, MBA could field a force in the imminent civil war and split Mirach three ways. Although Austin believes that Marta may be complicit in murder, she may turn out to be the strongest ally the Ortegas have when open warfare erupts.

Plot Summary[edit]

Tensions are high on Mirach in the aftermath of the Blackout. The planet's minister of information, Elora Rimonova, openly foments unrest against the pacifistic Governor Sergio Ortega and key business leader Marta Kinsolving, using her control of Mirach's communications network. The economy is in crisis, shattered by the HPG collapse, and the planet has caught the attention of the rogue industrialist Jacob Bannson.

Brothers Austin and Dale Ortega, members of their father's elite First Cossack Lancers, fear for the planet. When Dale's lover Hanna Leong is assassinated, shortly followed by Dale himself, Austin finds himself searching for the truth. Before his investigation can amount to much, though, the culprit makes her move. Rimonova, alongside manipulated Legate Calvilena Tortorelli, launches a military coup, seeking to hand the planet over to Kal Radick's Steel Wolves.

Through the combination of Sergio's plots and manipulations, Marta's Mirach Business Association IndustrialMech force, Republic agent Jerome Parsons's Atlas, and Austin's heartfelt pleas and museum-recovered Centurion, the planetary government fends off the coup attempt. Rimonova is sent into exile, and Tortorelli, left in his post, is stripped of his powers.

Featured characters[edit]

Featured worlds[edit]

Featured units[edit]

Featured BattleTech[edit]

'Mechs[edit]

Battle Armor[edit]

DropShips[edit]

  • Union-class
  • unspecified DropShips

Foreign-Language Editions[edit]

German[edit]

A German edition, translated by Reinhold H. Mai, was published by Heyne in 2004 as Ruinen der Macht (ISBN 9783453879003).[1]

Hungarian[edit]

A Hungarian edition, translated by Zaránd Fruzsina, was published by Delta Vision in 2003 as A hatlom romaji.[2]

Spanish[edit]

A Spanish edition, translated by Ángel Martínez, was published by Devir in 2004 as Las ruinas del poder.

Covers[edit]

References[edit]

  1. Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Catalog entry for Ruinen der Macht
  2. Beholder product page for A hatlom romaji