Clan Goliath Scorpion

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Clan Goliath Scorpion
Faction Profile
Time period:	2807 – Present
Classification:	Clan
Controlled systems:	2?
Capital world:	Roche?
Ruler title:	Khan
Military:	Clan Goliath Scorpion Touman
Secret Service:	Clan Goliath Scorpion Watch

Clan Goliath Scorpion was one of the original twenty Clans founded by Nicholas Kerensky, named after the Goliath Scorpions found on Babylon. Staunch Wardens, the Goliath Scorpions value precision over brute force, while believing strongly in visions and quests. They take Necrosia, a drug based on the venom of the goliath scorpion, to aid in these visions. This Clan believes in looking to the past in order to rebuild the Star League, piece by piece, though their obsession with this goal has blinded them on occasion. The Goliath Scorpions famously provided Clan Wolf the deep-sea diving Exoskeletons which would serve as the progenitors for modern Battle Armor.

After the Wars of Reaving they moved out of the Clan Space, and conquered the Periphery state Nueva Castile and renamed it La Escorpion del Imperio.

History

Founding

The Scorpions' first Khan was Cyrus Elam, a former member of the SLDF Corps of Engineers, chosen to lead his Clan because of innovative tactics he demonstrated in training on Strana Mechty. His saKhan was Jenna Scott, a young infantry commander known for predicting her enemies' movements. Under their Khan's instruction, the fledgling Clan developed flexible combat tactics and fielded combined-arms forces. They would soon come to embody their totem animal and earn a fearsome reputation for swift and deadly strikes.

Operation Klondike

The Scorpions were assigned to retake the world of Dagda. The cluster made the first landing on Dagda, and faced off against the McMillan Collective, the best-equipped and best-led faction on the planet. The crux of the fighting was at Firebase Delta, a functional Space Defense System facility. While the Scorpions took the facility, it cost them nearly a quarter of their strength.

After crushing some smaller factions on the Riva continent, the Scorpions faced The Chosen, a doomsday cult who thought to ride out the war in an upland mining facility-turned-monastery. After grinding the Chosen's military to pieces, the Scorpions laid a siege against the monastery itself. When the time came to storm the structure, many of the inhabitants committed suicide rather than be taken by the clans.

Dagda had three remaining seaborne atolls (large manmade habitats built to harvest naval resources). The first two surrendered peacefully to the Clans, but the final atoll ambushed the Scorpion landing party and wiped them out to a woman, Naomi Djerassi, who was taken as a prisoner. Trained in commando tactics, she escaped and waged a campaign of terror against the vicious inhabitants until they surrendered to Scorpion reinforcements who arrived later.

The Scorpions moved on to the Tenno continent, where they faced the Drakkars. Khan Elam intimidated the Drakkar into surrendering by threatening to subject their headquarters to orbital bombardment. The Drakkar leader was later adopted into the Scorpions' technician caste.

Infantry officer Naomi Djerassi would claim a single-handed victory for her Clan on Kepler Atoll against vastly overwhelming odds as the Dagda campaign bogged down prior to the Siege of the Black Brian.

The Scorpions' heavy losses ruled them out from participating in the final battles of the Dagda campaign.

Rebuilding

The Goliath Scorpions would be awarded a portion of Dagda to settle, setting up along the rocky coasts and on the ocean floors to create their first enclave. Khan Elam utilized his skills as an engineer to construct extensive deep-sea mining facilities on Dagda, while the planetary defense base on Satan's Table was rebuilt and served as the Clan's primary home. Similar resource-gathering efforts were started on Roche and Tokasha as territory was ceded to their control. The Goliath Scorpions became famous for their ability to exploit overlooked or underutilized areas for resources, bringing in a steady supply of materials needed to rebuild following the Pentagon conquests. However, the Clan and its very character would be most influenced by a chance discovery on Babylon.

In the days following the pacification of the Pentagon worlds, a patrol from Clan Ice Hellion discovered General Ethan Moreau, sunburned and scared, atop a jagged obsidian rock in the Spiked Heart Desert. While apparently suffering from the stings of a goliath scorpion, Moreau demanded he be given an audience to Nicholas Kerensky, referring to his old friend as ilKhan. That someone not of the Clans would refer to Kerensky by this word has been attributed to the visionary power of the goliath scorpion's venom, though the truth of the incident is muddled by Goliath Scorpion mythology. In any case, the Ice Hellions brought Moreau before Kerensky and the general, through parched lips, begged forgiveness from his friend for rejecting to join him on the Second Exodus. Kerensky accepted, and began the tradition of surkai among Clan members seeking forgiveness.

Citing the likelihood of infirmity from his wounds, the Ice Hellions refused to take in the veteran MechWarrior and last survivor of the Gunslinger Program. Khan Elam therefore won the petition to take on Moreau as a trainer, though like others who refused the Second Exodus his genes were denied a place in the Clans' eugenics program. Moreau also became Goliath Scorpion's first Loremaster, writing down the lessons he learned into their portion of The Remembrance.

The Clan would take part in the Annihilation of Clan Wolverine in 2823 and again a decade later against Clan Widowmaker. Loremaster Moreau himself would take part in the last battle against the Widowmakers on Roche, as Clan Wolf had been given the right to Absorb the rebel Clan and pursued them to their final stronghold of Porthos. The Scorpions would save the Wolves from a Widowmaker trap, with Khan Elam dying in a mysterious artillery strike that also killed the Widowmakers saKhan, though Clan Wolf was initially outraged at the interference. Khan Jerome Winson eventually accepted that Moreau's surkairede was an honor debt to his entire Clan, and so in thanks to their timely aid granted the Goliath Scorpions much of the Widowmaker enclave on Roche, including their massive military fortress the Spiderholm. A new Khan, Shandra Dinour, would replace Elam as leader of the Goliath Scorpions and play an important role in shaping their future character.

The Golden Century

During the Golden Century the Goliath Scorpions would help revolutionize Clan society with the creation of underwater industrial exoskeletons in 2842. Known as "water elementals" to their laborer-caste operators, these suits allowed the Clan to harvest the mineral wealth buried beneath the planet's watery depths, which impressed visiting merchants from Clan Wolf. In exchange for mineral rights to almost all of Dagda's oceans, Goliath Scorpion granted the Wolves the technology behind their diving suits, and used their new mineral wealth to become the planet's dominate industrial power and expand their colonies on Roche and Tokasha. The Scorpions were just as surprised as everyone else when the Wolves unveiled their Elemental Battle Armor in 2868, though they quickly recognized where the technology had originated, and were equally impressed by their performance in battle. Petitioning the Wolves for a reciprocal trade, the Scorpions acquired the design plans and twenty of the new suits in exchange for breeding rights to the Collesano, Baba and Shaffer Bloodlines.

The Clan had much more trouble acquiring the technology behind OmniMechs, however, which Clan Coyote debuted in 2854. Three separate operations to seize the technology were frustrated as Coyote warriors would invoke zellbrigen to reduce the conflict to a set of duels between warriors. Though easily winning each full-scale battle, the result would be nullified as the Coyotes' superior machines allowed them to handily defeat the Scorpions in single combat. It would take years before the Goliath Scorpions finally began fielding their own OmniMechs, taking them in a raid against Clan Fire Mandrill's Payne kindraa, by which time the other Clans were already fielding large numbers of OmniMechs. In response to their poor showing, Khan Dinour instituted a series of gladiatorial tournaments based upon the Martial Olympiads in what became known as the Circus Honorae, or Circle of Honor. These tournaments would continue into the modern day as a means of sharpening warriors' dueling skills.

The Golden Century also saw the beginning of many other Goliath Scorpion traditions. Loremaster Moreau, having survived the effects of the goliath scorpion venom himself, petitioned Khan Dinour to institute a rite of initiation for young Scorpion warriors. Each recruit would allow a goliath scorpion to sting them, thereby proving their fortitude. The fatality rate from this rite, however, quickly became too much for the Clan to bear. In response the scientist caste devised a drink called necrosia based upon the scorpion venom which, while safe to ingest in controlled quantities, kept the hallucinogenic side affects and allowed for "prophetic visions." It was in 2845 when Moreau, after one of these visions, gathered together the Clan's warriors and charged them to find a cache of Star League relics left behind by Clan Wolverine on Marshall. Five years of fruitless searching provided no clues, whereupon a patrol by the Ice Hellions found a grotto matching Moreau's description a mere two months later. Khan Dinour issued a batchall to take the site by force, and within the week drove off the Ice Hellions, revealing a sizable amount of Star League artifacts and weapons. The Ice Hellions however began a series of Trials of Possession for the cache which lasted a year with no clear winner. This left both Clans vulnerable to elements of Clan Fire Mandrill seeking to take advantage of the situation. Such was both side's anger at the interlopers, especially when the Fire Mandrills killed Loremaster Moreau after he requested hegira, that they combined their forces to force the Mandrills to withdraw. Coming to an understanding with each other, the Hellions were allowed to keep the Star League weaponry while the Scorpions took possession of the remaining contents and the caves themselves.

The new Loremaster, Lan Kirov, was inspired by Moreau to continue his brand of mysticism and quest for knowledge. Within the next two decades, Kirov created a special cadre of warriors called Seekers, charged with finding artifacts of the lost Star League scattered throughout the Pentagon and Kerensky Clusters and bringing them back to the Clan in order to rebuild the League anew. The Seekers quickly became a force throughout Clan space, discovering many forgotten caches of and winning many duels for Star League technology and cultural items, which the Clan dutifully collected in order to study and understand the League and its highest ideals. However, the Seeker movement ran into trouble when it threatened to split the Clan's warrior caste. Seekers had begun wearing their own uniforms, the silver and red clothing meant to distinguish them from the rest of the Clan, and expanded the Spiderholm fortress in 2785 to incorporate the Temple of the Nine Muses, a storehouse for Star League artifacts and the movement's unofficial headquarters. When Loremaster Kirov called for the Seekers to begin searching the worlds of the Inner Sphere, events finally came to a head. With the split threatening to leave the Clan vulnerable to its enemies, saKhan Scott challenged Kirov for leadership of the movement, and in a legendary knife-fight defeated him despite being thirty years the Loremaster's senior. She forced the Seekers to swear an oath to the ideals of Kerensky before their own or be eliminated by their fellow Clansmen, before dying of her own wounds.

The Great Debate

Such was the Clan's self-involvement that the growing split within the greater Clan society over the question of returning to the Inner Sphere went completely unnoticed. When the vote to invade the Inner Sphere was brought before the Great Council in 3000, it came as a puzzling surprise, though the Clan's leadership quickly rejected the idea. Siding with their close ally Clan Wolf and the Warden ideology, they believed the Inner Sphere was meant to be protected, not conquered and dominated. As an alternative, they backed Wolf Khan Kerlin Ward's Dragoon Compromise, sending a force of volunteer trueborn and freeborn warriors to scout the Inner Sphere and determine its military readiness. In an unforeseen move, the Scorpion's saKhan Ren Posavatz issued a batchall to train Wolf's Dragoons and won the bid unopposed.

The elite Heartvenom Cluster, the Clan's special forces unit, trained the Dragoons for two years in unconventional tactics. Drawing upon the Star League military doctrines and holovids stored within the Scorpion archives, they transformed the unit into an elite fighting force the equal of any front-line Cluster. Protestations against this methodology as being in opposition to Clan ideals fell on deaf ears, with Wolf Khan Kerlin Ward giving them his support and permission to depart in 3004. A number of Goliath Scorpion volunteers accompanied the Dragoons on their mission, while Star Colonel Vlad Dinour, commander of the Heartvenom Cluster, was won by Clan Wolf in a Trial of Possession and used to mold the 4th Striker Cluster along Scorpion lines, becoming a model assault unit for Epsilon Galaxy. Reports provided by the Dragoons and Scorpions on Inner Sphere tactical doctrine became of vital importance to the Wolves during the invasion.

When the ComStar Explorer Corps JumpShip Outbound Light accidentally discovered the world of Huntress in 3048, concern about the discovery of their homeworlds spurred the Clans into action. Smoke Jaguar Khan Leo Showers played upon these fears and rallied the Clans in a hasty Great Council vote to approve Operation Revival. Though the vote was passed by a wide margin, Goliath Scorpion leadership, in a show of disdain for Showers' brinkmanship, cast their vote with the toss of a coin.

Operation Revival

In the Trials to determine who would participate in the invasion, Clan Goliath Scorpion was left out of the initial wave, although they were able to take advantage of the situation. With so many units away from the homeworlds on their Crusade, many Seekers began searching through areas previously considered too heavily-defended. SaKhan Posavatz himself was nearly killed on the Smoke Jaguar world of Tranquil during one such raid, barely escaping from a terrible battle outside the city of Blood River. He would later win a Trial of Possession against Clan Steel Viper in 3049 for the right to accompany them into the Inner Sphere, taking with him his retinue and a Star of 'Mechs. Rising military tensions between the so-called Home Clans also saw in that same year Khan Nikolai Djerassi steping down from his post, announcing his intention to reshape the Clan's sibkos in preparation for conflict not only with the Inner Sphere, but with their fellow Clansmen as well.

Posavatz would not return from his quest to discover Star League relics, disappearing during the fighting on Tukayyid when the Steel Vipers were forced to retreat from Devil's Bath. The sudden loss of leadership in the wake of defeat on Tukayyid was fortunately filled quickly. Khan Ariel Suvorov promised to modernize the Clan's aerospace forces and expand their territory within the homeworlds, while saKhan Nelson Elam counseled a conservative strategy to bolster their defenses against their aggressive Clan brethren. This mix of ideologies gave the Clan a focus and resiliency missing since the Golden Century.

Times of Turmoil

The years following the Truce of Tukayyid saw great fluctuation within Clan society. For their part, Goliath Scorpion strengthening their bond with Clan Wolf as, in the wake of the Refusal War of 3057, the Scorpions gladly bid away an entire Trinary of Crusader-minded warriors to the Wolves. Their part in the Harvest Trials was rewarded with the gift of an ancient Mackie from Galaxy Commander Katya Kerensky. The Scorpions stood by as Clan Smoke Jaguar was destroyed in the Great Refusal, and in the period afterwards that become known as the Wars of Possession - the Absorption of Clan Burrock, the defection of Clan Nova Cat and mass relocation of Clan Ghost Bear - the Scorpions played only a minor role and made few gains.

Chief among these was the capture of an enclave on Huntress' Abysmal Continent, a move which gained them a Warhawk factory and several resource complexes, and the capture of Fort Fairchild and Tokasha MechWorks Alpha on Tokasha. However in a decisive defeat, which saw the loss of a WarShip and nearly a third of their territory on the planet, the fort and the MechWorks facility were both taken from the Scorpions by Clan Hell's Horses on April 13 in 3065. The Scorpions also made efforts to improve their trading with Clan Snow Raven and reached out to Clan Jade Falcon for a military alliance.

Jihad

At some point in 3068, Clan Goliath Scorpion took part of the 71st Light Horse Regiment of the Eridani Light Horse Brigade as bondsmen. As living relics of the original Star League, the Light Horse have been the source of intense fascination to the Scorpions. When Clan Diamond Shark could no longer provide communications and provisions, Khan Ariel Suvorov authorized the Seekers to approach the Star League embassy and its ELH garrison. Subsequently, the Scorpion merchant caste was allowed to provide those services to the mercenaries while inculcating them on Goliath Scorpion culture.

When the Jihad plunged the Inner Sphere into chaos and destruction, some of the remaining Star League embassy staff chose to be evacuated by the Diamond Sharks back to the Inner Sphere. The 71st Light Horse and other staff did not share those sentiments. Colonel Sandra Barclay used her newfound knowledge of Clan customs to declare a Trial of Possession for the Scorpions' Huntress enclave. If they lost, they offered themselves up to be Absorbed by the Clan. The Trial was a hard-fought victory for the Scorpions, whereupon they took the light battalion that remained as abtakha in what could be described as a celebratory atmosphere.

After going through their Trial of Positions, a few individuals were dispersed throughout the Scorpion Touman, while the majority along with several Seekers were formed into two new Clusters, the 1st and 2nd Eridani Lancers. It should be noted that unlike other Clans' Inner Sphere Abtakha, the Scorpions were apparently impressed enough with the ELH that they allowed the former mercenaries to continue using their surnames. Colonel Sandra Barclay managed to achieve the rank of Star Colonel and took command of the First Eridani Lancers.

Culture

Clan Goliath Scorpion culture is devoted almost entirely to rebuilding the shattered Star League. This obsession with searching the past to unlock the future is fulfilled through the use of necrosia and the Seeker tradition.

Necrosia

The use of goliath scorpion venom first began during the early years of the Golden Century, when candidates wishing to enter the Warrior Caste subjected themselves to a goliath scorpion's sting as proof of their physical and mental toughness. The result of these tests however left the Clan dangerously weak as far too many applicants died from the neurotoxin, while survivors reported intensely psychoactive dream-states, purportedly showing them glimpses of the future.

Wishing to cut down on the fatality rate while retaining its mystical properties, Goliath Scorpion scientists created necrosia, an indigestible, luminous-green cocktail made from the venom. This complex mix of proteins and enzymes reduces the levels of histamine and alkaloids naturally present in the venom, while the hue is a result of the electrical milking process inadvertently capturing the florescent chemicals contained within the animal's tail. When consumed in controlled quantities necrosia is safe to drink and induces the same type of hallucinogenic visions as the natural venom, though whether these visions are actual glimpses of the future is a matter of disagreement between the Clan's warrior and scientist castes.

Seekers

The Seeker movement was created by Loremaster Lan Kirov as a means for the Clan to fulfill its self-appointed goal of looking into the past to rebuild the future. Seekers are independent nomadic warriors, operating outside the bounds of normal military hierarchy, charged with finding lost artifacts of the destroyed Star League. It is by this method that Clan Goliath Scorpion has one of the largest collections of Star League knowledge, safely stored within the Temple of the Nine Muses beneath the fortress Spiderholm on Roche. Permission must be granted for a warrior to embark on one of these quests, often the result of a necrosia-induced vision granting them the supposed location of an item, and prior to leaving they must take an oath known as the Rede of the Seeker. If they failed to return to the Clan, the Seeker would be branded a bandit.

Each Seeker, much like the knights-errant of medieval Europe, is allowed their own personal retainers, known as charges. Charges could be drawn from the Clans' bondsmen, along with other needed supplies, subject to standard Clan Trials and performed specific duties within the Seeker's retinue. Warrior-caste bondsmen, given the title of Yeomen, perform the same tasks as normal bondsmen. The title of Tinkers are given to technicians charged with vehicle maintenance and battlefield salvage. Laborer bondsmen, or Footmen, are charged with taking care of the Seeker's pets, known as familiars. These familiars represent the warrior's traits or far-off worlds he's visited, with some familiars becoming associated with certain Bloodlines, and the practice has become common outside the Seeker movement. The less-common Sutlers and Sages are merchant- and scientist-caste bondsmen who act as advisers for Seekers on particularly lengthy quests. Most significant of all though are the Harbingers, artists who act as each Seeker's chief chronicler and artisan. These artists, rarely praised within normal Clan society, can gain nearly the same respect as that of the warrior to whom they are bonded. These Charges and Familiars create a "living heraldry" that is used to recognize the warrior, even when they are veiled behind the standard Scorpion uniform.

Zulkari

When saKhan Scott fought Loremaster Kirov for control of the Seeker movement, she wielded a pair of sharp knives similar in form to the zulfiqar carried by the ancient Terran prophet Muhammad. In honor of her sacrifice, the Clan's leadership instituted the custom of carrying paired daggers modeled on Scott's weapons called zulkari. One zulkari is traditionally black-hilted with a golden tassel, while the other reverses this color scheme.

Dance of the Scars

This ritualized form of combat traces its lineage directly back to the infamous knife fight between saKhan Scott and Loremaster Kirov for control of the Seekers. A modified Circle of Equals, the dance of the scars requires the combatants to strike each other in a precisely-defined series of cuts. The first two cuts must be made across each shoulder, followed by cuts across each wrist, and a final cut across the center of the chest. The warrior to make the fifth and final cut on his opponent is declared the winner. While normally conducted unarmored, a number of Scorpion warriors began challenging others to "dance the scars" while piloting 'Mechs in the years following the Clan invasion, considering these fights to be the ultimate show of honor.

Military

Main article: Clan Goliath Scorpion Touman

Goliath Scorpion's Touman is surprisingly regimented, especially given the solitary nature of their Seeker tradition. Each Cluster and Trinary is mixed forced composed of varying levels of BattleMechs, Aerospace Fighters and Elementals. 'Mech Stars are typically light to heavy-weight machines fast enough to envelop the enemy's flanks while providing the main knockout punch during ground assaults. Aerospace Stars are dominated by heavy fighters for ground-support missions, while Elementals are trained to act in concert with 'Mechs and fighters, as well as perform paradrops into contest combat zones. The newly-developed Undine Battle Armor also allows the Clan to combat enemies in underwater environments.

Laser weapons are prized by the Clan, both for their precision and lack of ammunition requirements (qualities also useful for the nomadic Seekers), while missile weapons are seen as the tools of the unskilled. Targeting Computers are used extensively as well, though warriors will often disable parts of these systems in order to showcase their true skill. This display of a warrior's skill is highly prized within the Clan, especially in the honor duels governed by zellbrigen. Goliath Scorpion is stricter in upholding zellbrigen than even Clan Jade Falcon or Clan Blood Spirits, despite the lessons learned during the Clan Invasion.

For all its strengths, Goliath Scorpion military doctrines are predictable and focused entirely on ground operations. While enjoying a respectable number of WarShips and similar craft, they lack the experience or assets to combat against an opponent challenging their control of the aerospace realm. Perhaps the biggest flaw in their doctrine, contrary to the individualistic nature of their Seekers, is the tendency of Galaxy Commanders to micromanage their forces, resulting in a lack of initiative among the lower ranks.

Inter-Clan Relations

Prior to the Schism, the Goliath Scorpions were loyal allies of Clan Wolf, though the creation of Clan Wolf-in-Exile has muddied this relationship. They also have profitable dealings with Clan Snow Raven and Clan Ghost Bear. However, Clan Fire Mandrill is especially hated by the Goliath Scorpions for the brutal murder of their first Loremaster and, ironically, they dismiss Clan Nova Cat's version of mysticism as nonsense.

Leaders of Clan Goliath Scorpion

Khans

• Cyrus Elam, 2802-2823 (Killed during the Widowmaker Absorption)

• Shandra Dinour, 2823-???

• Nikolai Djerassi, ???-3052 (Stepped down after the Battle of Tukayyid)

• Ariel Suvorov, 3052-3079 (Died in the Trial of Refusal against the Scorpion Abjurement)

• Colin Yeh, 3079-??? (Became the first Khan of La Escorpion del Imperio)

saKhans

• Jenna Scott, 2802-??? (Died after Trial against Loremaster Lan Kirov)

• Ren Posavatz, ???-3052 (Disappeared during the Viper campaign on Tukayyid)

• Nelson Elam, 3052-February 3071 (Died during Trial of Refusal against ilKhan Garret Sainze)

• Kelton Myers, February 3071-March 3074 (Died during Trial of Absorption of the Ice Hellions)

• Connor Rood, March 3074-??? (Became the first saKhan of La Escorpion del Imperio)

Loremasters

• Ethan Moreau, ???-2845 (Killed by Clan Fire Mandrill)

• Lan Kirov, 2845-???

• Kyrie Ben-Shimon, ???-March 3073 (Killed covering the withdrawal of Gamma Galaxy from Foster against Clan Coyote)

• Colin Yeh, March 3073-3079 (Promoted to Khan after the loss of Khan Suvorov)

• Sargon Ben-Shimon, 3079-??? (Became the first Loremaster of La Escorpion del Imperio)

Era Specific Data

3061

Affiliation: Warden
Capital: Roche
Population (Clan space): 67.238.000 (3060)
Population growth rate: 2.4 percent (84/60)
Self-Sufficiency Index: 91 percent

Leaders
Khan: Ariel Suvovrov
saKhan: Nelson Flam
Loremaster: Kyrie Ben-Shimon
Scientist-General: Germon (Wilkinson)
Merchant Factor: Palos
Master Technician: Noam
Senior Laborer: Suu

Military
Clusters: 24
WarShips: 17

Clan Space Worlds
Dagda (29 percent)
Huntress (18 percent)
Marshall (36 percent)
Roche (83 percent)
Strana Mechty (7 percent)
Tokasha (23 percent)

Bibliography

• Blake Ascending
• Field Manual: Warden Clans
• Field Manual: Updates
• Historical: Operation Klondike
• Jihad Hot Spots: 3070

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