Gideon Braver Vandenburg

Gideon Braver Vandenburg (born 8. April 3006, died December 3051) was best known as the commander of the mercenary unit Blazing Aces which he created and commanded under the abbreviated name Gideon Braver unto his death.

Canonicity

Gideon Braver is the player's alter ego in the MechWarrior computer game. The game and its storyline are apocryphal (see section about Canonicity in that article); they are expressly not included among the list of canonical sources for the BattleTech universe, but it has been also said that information from certain sources indicating this one can be assumed to be part of the shared universe if it makes sense, until contradicted. MechWarrior in particular is one of the computer games where the storyline is widely treated as canonical.

The demise of the Blazing Aces and the death of Gideon Braver were narrated in a subsequent game (BattleTech: The Crescent Hawks' Revenge), also apocryphal, between missions. Much content from the Crescent Hawks games was fully canonized, including their general storylines; it remains unclear if this means by extension that Gideon Braver and the Blazing Aces, who feature in this storyline, were thus also canonized.

Character history

Gideon Braver Vandenburg was the son of Duke Cameron Vandenburg of Ander's Moon. On March 1, 3024, he left Castle Vandenburg, his father's stronghold, for an inspection of the family's holdings. Upon his return two days later he found that a Lance of BattleMechs had attacked the Castle, killed his family and stolen the Chalice of Herne along with other treasure. Evidence planted by Jarris McBrin, a rival who coveted the title of Duke for himself, suggested that House Vandenburg had worked with and then double-crossed the pirates. The Council of Representatives was unconvinced, however, and chose to delay the election of a new Duke until Gideon Braver Vandenburg had reached adulthood (23 years of age) on April 8, 3029.

Facing false charges of treason, Gideon was forced to flee off-world. He formed the Blazing Aces mercenary unit, altered his name, and began his crusade to clear his name, find the Chalice, and regain Ander's Moon. In this he succeeded in less than five years, and the evidence uncovered by the Blazing Aces cleared the Vandenburg family name and restored their honor.

Despite this success, it remains unclear whether Gideon Braver Vandenburg actually took the vacant office of Duke of Ander's Moon. The Blazing Aces were destroyed in December of 3051, fighting either Clan Ghost Bear or Clan Smoke Jaguar on Kaesong, and Gideon Braver received mortal wounds in combat while piloting his Phoenix Hawk.

His dying words to Jason Youngblood were: "You're too late. The Aces... destroyed. I've taken precautions, hidden the 'Mechs. Tell Maria... rebuild the Aces. She'll know what to do."

The identity of Maria, presumably Gideon Braver's heir, remains a mystery.

Family tree

Cameron Vandenburg

Gideon Braver Vandenburg

References

• MechWarrior I video game
• BattleTech: The Crescent Hawks' Revenge video game