Editing Dark Caste

{{Update Needed|[[The Wars of Reaving]]|[[The Wars of Reaving Supplemental]]|[[Falcon Rising]]|[[Icons of War]]|[[Clan Spaniel Sourcebook]]}}
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The '''Dark Caste''' (also known as the '''Bandit Caste''') refers to the lowest caste in [[Clan]] society, that of the outcasts and bandits. This caste is not recognized by Clan society, yet it exists. It supports the failures of Clan society, the unwanted, and the rejects. The dark caste has no voice in Clan affairs because their group is not sanctioned.

Clan literature is filled with stories of malcontents who fled to the bandit caste and came to unsavory ends. Bandit caste atrocities are the stuff of legends, but it is difficult to believe that the caste is strong enough to be more than a minor nuisance to the Clans.

It is unknown whether the Clans allow the Bandit Caste to exist or not; some cynically believe that it is fostered on purpose to provide both an outlet for those disaffected by Clan society and as a built-in enemy for training purposes. Regardless, the caste does serve two purposes: first, it is incentive to children to excel in their caste's profession to avoid needing to join the Bandit Caste if they are not deemed useful to the Clan; second, it provides an enemy, although a somewhat weak enemy, for the Warrior Caste to sharpen its skills against, especially when a Bandit Caste settlement becomes strong enough to become more than a nuisance.

It should be noted that warriors who fail to test up or who grow too old to be of service sometimes slip away to this caste, as do scientists whose discoveries are deemed counterproductive to the Clans.

[[Clan Burrock]] had significant ties with the Dark Caste before their [[Absorption]] by [[Clan Star Adder]].

==Post-Jihad==
In the wake of the invasion of the [[Inner Sphere]], the [[Clans]] created occupation zones and attempted to scour the local pirate populations away. As the Clans became more settled in their occupation zones, the Dark Caste began to establish a presence within those zones. Initially, the Dark Caste clashed with those same pirate elements that had survived, but it wasn't long before the two groups began working together.<ref name="J:FRp38">''Jihad: Final Reckoning'', p. 38: "Clan Space: The New Pirate Frontier"</ref>

The [[Jihad]] gave the opportunity for both groups to strike at their common foe, claiming many small victories and more firmly establishing their presence; by the beginning of the [[3080]]s, the Clan-occupied zones were home to more pirate-related activity than any other area in the Inner Sphere. Those pirates who survived the initial Clan attempts to destroy them had evolved to face the threat posed, and the Clans had been unable to eradicate the Dark Caste despite centuries of effort, making it likely that the two groups would continue to enjoy successes working together.<ref name="J:FRp38"/> It is not known if pirate groups have started adopting Dark Caste traits or the other way around.

==References==
<references />

==Bibliography==
* ''[[Classic BattleTech Companion]]''
* ''[[Jihad: Final Reckoning]]''


[[Category:Clan Terms]]
[[Category:Political Groups]]