Invasion corridor - Clan Jade Falcon

Order of Battle

Clan Command

Turkina Keshik

Jade Falcon Naval Reserve

Jade Falcon Galaxy

Galaxy Command Star

Jade Falcon Guards

Third Falcon Talon Cluster

Seventh Falcon Regulars Cluster

Ninth Talon Cluster

Twelfth Falcon Regulars

Jade Eyrie Cluster

Jade Solahma Cluster

Gyrfalcon Galaxy

Galaxy Command Star

First Falcon Striker Cluster

Second Falcon Jaegers Cluster

Fifth Battle Cluster

305th Assault Cluster

Gyrfalcon Eyrie Cluster

Gyrfalcon Solahma Cluster

Peregrine Galaxy

Galaxy Command Star

First Falcon Velites

Fourth Falcon Talon Cluster

Fourth Falcon Velites

Eighth Falcon Regulars Cluster

Eighty-ninth Falcon Striker Cluster

Ninety-fourth Striker Cluster

124th Striker Cluster

Peregrine Eyrie Cluster

Peregrine Solahma Cluster

Emerald Talon Naval Assault Star

Front-Line Forces

	BattleMechs	Elementals	Fighters	WarShips	JumpShips	DropShips
Turkina Keshik	50	75	30	1	X	4
Naval Reserve	X	X	X	1	12	66
Jade Falcon	322	835	154	6	X	21
Gyrfalcon	260	450	180	5	X	19
Peregrine	340	875	220	7	X	30
Total	972	2235	584	20	12	140

Notes

Preparations

Upon his election as senior Khan of Clan Jade Falcon, Elias Crichell made a point of improving relations with Clan Smoke Jaguar and the new ilKhan, Leo Showers, including an exchange of generous gifts such as land and genetic material. When it came time to decide how to execute Operation REVIVAL, the two Crusaders worked closely together to create a plan of attack remarkable in its simplicity and indicative of the Clans' dismissive attitude towards the Inner Sphere "barbarians." Four Clans would assault along four separate "corridors" designated Alpha through Delta, cutting a path respectively through the Federated Commonwealth, Free Rasalhague Republic, and Draconis Combine, with the ultimate goal being Terra. It was also Crichell who, basing his reasoning from obscure passages written by Aleksandr Kerensky himself, proposed that the Clan which captured Terra would become ilClan.

The plan was presented to the Grand Council and, despite minor modifications, remained largely unchanged from what Showers and Crichell had worked out. While Clan Wolf was forced to participate automatically in retribution for opposing the invasion, the other three assaulting Clans would be determined through bidding and Trials, with a second set to determine through which corridor they would attack. Thanks to the skill of their warriors the Jade Falcon Clan earned one of the coveted spots and the right to Alpha Corridor, cutting a path through the Federated Commonwealth. In celebration for this victory Khan Crichell ordered seven days of festivities to take place, a mere two weeks before the invasion would commence.

Not all Jade Falcon warriors were in a celebratory mood though. Iota Galaxy's Jessica Buhallin and Logistics Overseer Tanner Calbot were both critical not only of the amount of supplies (or lack thereof) Khan Crichell had ordered for the coming invasion, but the rather optimistic projection of how quickly they would be used up, where supply depots were to be set up, and the Jade Falcons' lack of transports to carry those supplies which had been ordered. Khan Crichell largely ignored their concerns, even going so far as to suggest it made more sense to bring empty transports so as to bring back their spoils to Clan space. His only concession was to order the Jade Falcon bankers to contract out a few extra transports from the Free Guilds. Finally in June 3049 the combined invasion fleet gathered together and began their journey to the Inner Sphere.

Invasion Route

Periphery Action (Ending October 3049)

Before reaching the worlds of the Inner Sphere the Clans would first have to pass through the Periphery, backwater planets with few inhabitants and little in the way to challenge the might of the Clans. Because they did not technically fall within any of the invasion corridors, the Clans were free to bid over the right to invade them. Most were defended by so-called "errants", solitary mercenaries with poorly maintained equipment; even those with some skill proved in most cases a poor match to the Clan warriors.

As they got closer to the borders of the Inner Sphere the prospect for a true fight increased, and so did the Clans' efforts to face a respectable opponent. The bidding for Von Strang's World was particularly fierce for two reasons: first because it was defended by a full regiment of BattleMechs, and second for its association with Colonel Gunthar von Strang, a butcher who served under the despised Stefan Amaris. The Jade Falcon Clan won the bidding war to invade the planet and Khan Crichell himself led the attack; to their joy the Jade Falcons discovered that a descendant of the colonel was still in charge of the planet. The defenders put up a fierce fight and the Jade Falcons suffered greater losses than they expected. In the end the defenders were defeated and the young Stephan Von Strang's body was hoisted on a flagpole, below the banners of the Star League and Clan Jade Falcon, from which it hung until finally falling off some time later.

Further battles were fought after the conquest of Von Strang's World, but although confronted by an enemy willing to fight fiercer and more deviously than expected Khan Crichell and his warriors were still dismissive of the coming invasion. Excuses were made and embarrassing particulars were covered up, all the while Clan Wolf's effort to share information and warn about the difficulties ahead were criticized. The last world was conquered by October 3049 and the next two months spent making preparations for the push into the Inner Sphere proper. A small number of civilians were shipped in to establish a logistics network and the majority of Jade Falcon supplies were deposited on Lackhove in order to free up as much transport space as possible for the next phase. Efforts were also made to alter the appearance of Jade Falcon OmniMechs and Elemental suits to inspire as much fear as possible. Everything from amazing camouflage patterns to almost psychedelic paint mixtures were used to color Jade Falcon 'Mechs, each Galaxy's falcon emblem was painted in bold fashion across every battle armor suit, and even synthetic feathers were added to some commanders' armor.

A final Grand Kurultai before the First Wave began was held aboard the Dire Wolf on 18 February 3050. Here ilKhan Showers heaped praises upon the invasion force's efforts thus far and predicted glory and easy victory in the coming battles. It was also at this meeting that the matter of ComStar and its recent proposal to assist the Clans was discussed. The Jade Falcons were wary of putting their trust in an unknown organization whose intentions were mysterious, and Khan Crichell considered them a barbarian organization not worthy of any trust. Still the Clan was trusting of the ilKhan and were reminded of the "unexpected allies" they were to encounter as prophesied by Aleksandr Kerensky. They hesitantly agreed to the proposal, although throughout the invasion Jade Falcon was among the most hostile to their ComStar allies.

Periphery Action

Date	Location	Attacker	Defender	Outcome
Unknown	Twilight	Star Commander Briggan	Sarah "Cat" Kattrin	Jade Falcon Victory
Unknown	Von Strang's World	Turkina Keshik	Von Strang's Guard Division	Jade Falcon Victory
Unknown (after The Rock)	Götterdämmerung (GV)	Two Trinaries	Ryan's Rebels Second Battalion	Jade Falcon Victory
Unknown (after The Rock)	Last Chance (GV)	Two Trinaries	Ryan's Rebels Third Battalion	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3049	Erewhon (GV)	An Elemental Binary from the Fourth Falcon Talon Cluster Star Captain Sophia Thastus	Erewhon Militia MechWarrior Sigland Idleson	Jade Falcon Victory
Unknown	Lackhove (GV)	Unknown	Unknown	Jade Falcon Victory

First Wave (March-April 3050)

Clan Jade Falcon began the First Wave of Operational Revival on 20 March 3050 with the simultaneous invasion of nine Federated Commonwealth worlds. Whereas it was considered normal for the attacker to announce their presence with the batchall many Jade Falcon commanders dispensed with the tradition, citing the uncivilized nature of their enemies as reason enough to breach this rule of Clan etiquette. The element of surprise in these opening attacks was further compounded by the Clans' general technological superiority, allowing their WarShips to evade detection until they were already in orbit of the planet and their DropShips and 'Mechs to use landing zones normally considered too rugged for most troops. Indeed many Jade Falcon units landed right within their foe's defensive zone, opening fire on them before even hitting the ground. Strategically their ultimate goal was to cripple the enemy's command and control functions through direct strikes, thereby achieving a quick victory with minimal loss of resources. When no obvious targets were present, the objective was instead the largest concentration of troops with the hope of achieving similar results.

For their part the FedCom defenders did their best to resist these attacks, aided in some small part by their "barbarian" tactics which they learned to use to their advantage. While it is normal in Clan warfare for 'Mechs to lead the fight in all things, in the Inner Sphere militia units on the defensive held their 'Mechs in reserve while conventional forces were used as a buffer to slow the enemy down. This led to a tactic known as "Falcon Foolin'" which took advantage of the Falcon adherence to zellbrigen. While the tactic did not result in any victories for the defenders, it did save the lives of many soldiers who would otherwise have been lost. Eventually Jade Falcon warriors were ordered to ignore challenges given by Inner Sphere warriors and to punish severely any attempt to underhandedly exploit the honor rules.

The defenders were further aided by how the Jade Falcons regularly underestimated their skill and determination to protect their homes. Although the Jade Falcons had a fair amount of intelligence on the Inner Sphere gathered previously by both Wolf's Dragoons and their own Watch services, the former's reports had been largely dismissed as traitorous gossip and the latter simply ignored. This resulted in worlds regarded as lightly defended requiring more effort than expected to successfully conquer. One aspect which the Jade Falcons did not ignore was FedCom Regimental Combat Teams. These were expected to give stiff resistance, requiring the attention of elite Falcon units and a minimum cutdown of two Clusters per world defended by an RCT.

The end of the First Wave was on the face of it a smashing success for the Jade Falcon Clan, which succeeded in capturing all of the target worlds. In truth it had exposed a number of worrying trends which only a few Falcon commanders picked up on. The first of these was the surprisingly tough resistance the FedCom soldiers had displayed in their battles with the Clan. The second was the fact this resistance often didn't end after the Jade Falcons had declared victory. The survivors and those who refused open confrontation simply melting away into the wilderness to begin guerrilla movements. This wasn't helped by the euphoria many Jade Falcon warriors felt at their easy conquests which, although inspiring reverential feelings in some, resulted in many abusing the local population. Regardless, most of Clan Jade Falcon's high command publicly regarded the unexpected skillfulness of their opponents as examples of luck, and when ilKhan Showers called for a final accounting of their First Wave progress the Jade Falcons gave whitewashed battle reports.

First Wave

Date	Location	Attacker	Defender	Outcome
March 3050	Anywhere (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Eighth Falcon Regulars	Anywhere Militia Second New Ivaarsen Chasseurs	Jade Falcon Victory
March 3050	Barcelona (FC)	Jade Falcon Galaxy Ninth Talon Cluster Third Falcon Talon Cluster Jade Falcon Guards (Reserve)	Seventeenth Skye Rangers RCT Barcelona Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
March 3050	Bone-Norman (FC)	Turkina Keshik Peregrine Galaxy Eighth Falcon Regulars	First Grave Walkers Bone-Norman Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
March 3050	Here (FC)	Turkina Keshik Jade Falcon Galaxy Third Falcon Talon Cluster	Eighth Arcturan Guards RCT Here Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
March 3050	Persistence	Peregrine Galaxy Fourth Falcon Talon Cluster	Persistence Militia Persistence Inc. Security Force	Jade Falcon Victory
March 3050	Toland (FC)	Turkina Keshik Jade Falcon Galaxy Ninth Talon Cluster	Twelfth Star Guards Second Regiment Toland Defense Force	Jade Falcon Victory
March 3050	Winfield (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy Fifth Battle Cluster	Winfield's Regiment Winfield Militia Brigade	Jade Falcon Victory
Unknown	Trell I (FC)	Jade Falcon Galaxy Jade Falcon Guards Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster Unknown Fifth Falcon Striker Cluster	Twelfth Donegal Guards RCT	Jade Falcon Victory
April 3050	Steelton (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Eighth Falcon Regulars Cluster Jade Falcon Galaxy Twelfth Donegal Guards Cluster	Twelfth Star Guards First Regiment Steelton Defense Brigade	Jade Falcon Victory

Second Wave (May-June 3050)

While publicly showing optimism to their warriors, privately the high command of Clan Jade Falcon were also worried by what they saw in the First Wave and put together responses to these problems. With their logistics increasingly strained a convoy system was created to begin a steady flow of supplies from their worlds in Clan space. The best freeborn Clusters were gathered together as a rapid reaction force to respond more quickly (and ruthlessly) to outbreaks of revolution on conquered worlds. Perhaps the most drastic measure Clan Jade Falcon took was to position the Emerald Talon Naval Assault Star in reserve for the express purpose of conducting planetary bombardments if any rebellions got out of hand.

The Second Wave officially started in May with the targeting of twelve FedCom worlds. Most were defended by mixed militia formations or the survivors of those units which had been mauled in the First Wave and managed to escape. Although resistance was fierce on Apollo, former capital of the Rim Worlds Republic, elsewhere the Jade Falcons had a much easier time against the defenders. This lack of effective resistance to the Jade Falcon conquest only engendered a false sense of confidence in their commanders.

Second Wave

Date	Location	Attacker	Defender	Outcome
May 3050	Apollo (FC)	Turkina Keshik	Second Grave Walkers Apollo Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Black Earth (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy	Remnants of First Grave Walkers Remnants of Seventeenth Skye Rangers RCT	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Butler (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Fourth Falcon Velites	Winfield's Regiment	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Derf (FC)	Jade Falcon Galaxy Third Falcon Talon Cluster	Remnants of Twelfth Donegal Guards RCT	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Evciler (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster	Evciler Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Golandrinas (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy 124th Striker Cluster	Golandrinas Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Maxie's Planet (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy 305th Assault Cluster	Maxie's Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Romulus (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster	Romulus Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Seiduts (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy Second Falcon Jaegers	Seiduts Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
May 3050	Somerset (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Ninety-fourth Striker Cluster	Somerset Academy Training Battalion Remnants of Eighth Arcturan Guards RCT Remnants of Second New Ivaarsen Chasseurs	Jade Falcon Victory
Jude 3050	Twycross (FC)	Jade Falcon Galaxy Jade Falcon Guards	Twycross TMM	Jade Falcon Victory
June 3050	Wotan (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy	Twelfth Star Guards Remnants of First & Second Regiments Wotan TMM	Jade Falcon Victory

Third Wave (June 3050)

The problems first noted at the beginning of the invasion finally came to a head with the start of the Third Wave. Rebellions were breaking out on their conquered worlds which proved too much for their present forces to handle and despite taking earlier efforts to rectify the logistics problem, the Jade Falcons could not effectively replenish their forces in time to carry out the same number of attacks as occurred in the previous wave. Only five worlds would be targeted by the Jade Falcons in the Third Wave, their embarrassment further compounded by the fact their hated rival, Clan Wolf, appeared to suffer no supply problems and was targeting more worlds than them.

Although the Jade Falcons succeeded in capturing their five worlds on schedule with mostly minimal resistance, the mood within the Clan was turning pessimistic with a sense that momentum had been lost. Further efforts to resolve the supply situation were made and Provisional Garrison Clusters (PGCs) were called in from the Homeworlds to better combat the insurrectionists. Still, towards the end of the month a rumor began circulating that Clan Steel Viper, the invasion force's reserve Clan and a bitter foe of Clan Jade Falcon, might be called in to participate in the next wave. Publicly the Jade Falcon Khans dismissed this rumor in spite of their private concerns.

Third Wave

Date	Location	Attacker	Defender	Outcome
June 3050	Beta VII (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy 124th Striker Cluster	Beta VII Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
June 3050	Hot Springs (FC)	Turkina Keshik Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster	Hot Springs TMM	Jade Falcon Victory
June 3050	Malibu (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Eighty-ninth Falcon Striker Cluster	Malibu Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
June 3050	Roadside (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Velites	Roadside Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
June 3050	Waldorff (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy Second Falcon Jaegers	Waldorff City Police Department	Jade Falcon Victory

Fourth Wave (July October 3050)

When the Fourth Wave began it seemed that Clan Jade Falcon had regained its momentum and was back in the running to become ilClan. Their supply problems resolved, the Clan targeted fifteen different worlds, the most of any of their previous waves. The attacks proceeded as scheduled with great success, and the ferocity of the Falcon warriors utterly destroyed several FedCom units. Success was in sight when the disaster of Twycross took place.

The Federated Commonwealth launched their first counterattack of the invasion against Twycross in September 3050, invading the planet with the Tenth Lyran Guards, Ninth FedCom RCT and both regiments of the Kell Hounds. Expecting to face only the second-line Jade Falcon Eyrie Cluster, they were confounded to find the planet also defended by the elite Jade Falcon Guards; the unit had been expected to depart from Twycross before the attack but were delayed due to bad weather. The FedCom forces pressed on and a fierce battle raged across the surface of the world. The turning point in the battle came when nearly the entire Falcon Guards unit, including Star Colonel Adler Malthus, was destroyed thanks to Kai Allard-Liao and a well-placed trap. The survivors were forced to withdraw and for the first time the "invincible" Clan invaders had been beaten.

More than the loss of the world itself was Twycross' effect on the Malthus Bloodname. Normally when one of the Bloodrights associated with a Bloodname has brought dishonor upon itself it has no bearing on any of the others. However the sheer magnitude of the disaster gave critics of the Malthus Bloodname an opening to call into question the competence of all Malthus warriors. SaKhan Timur Malthus was forced to resign from his position and most of the Malthus Bloodnamed sent back to the Homeworlds with orders to avoid bringing any more embarrassment to their genetic legacy. In Timur Malthus' place Khan Crichell chose Vandervahn Chistu as the new Jade Falcon saKhan.

Though successfully in taking all fifteen of their targeted worlds the Jade Falcons were still outdone by Clan Wolf, which was rapidly leaving the other Clans behind in the race for Terra. In his final attempt to slow down the Wolves' pace, ilKhan Leo Showers called for a Grand Kurultai to take place aboard the Dire Wolf on 1 November 3050. How exactly the ilKhan planned to accomplish his delay will never be known, as the day before the meeting was to take place the Dire Wolf came under attack by forces of the Free Rasalhague Republic and Leo Showers was killed when Tyra Miraborg's fighter rammed into the WarShip's bridge.

Fourth Wave

Date	Location	Attacker	Defender	Outcome
July 3050	Antares (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy	Antares Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
July 3050	Apolakkia (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy	Apolakkia Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Baker 3 (FC)	Turkina Keshik	Baker's Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Blackjack (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy	Blackjack Training Battalion	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Colmar (FC)	Iota Galaxy Seventh Falcon Talon	Twenty-fifth Arcturan Guards RCT (75% strength)	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Denizli (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Velites	Demon Company Denizli Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Devin (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster	First Devin Armored Battalion Second Devin Armored Battalion	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Dompaire (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy 305th Assault Cluster	Dompaire Armored Cavalry	Jade Falcon Victory
August 3050	Goat Path (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster	Goat Path Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
September 3050	Graus (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Fourth Falcon Velites	None	Jade Falcon Victory
September 3050	Leskovik (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy Second Falcon Jaegers	Leskovik Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
September-October 3050	Parakoila (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy	Parakoila 'Mech Battalion	Jade Falcon Victory
September-October 3050	Sudeten (FC)	Turkina Keshik Peregrine Galaxy 124th Striker Cluster	Gray Death Legion Sudeten Militia	Jade Falcon Victory
September 3050	Twycross	Tenth Lyran Guards RCT Ninth FedCom RCT First & Second Regiments Kell Hounds	Jade Falcon Galaxy Jade Falcon Guards Jade Falcon Eyrie Cluster	FedCom Victory
September-October 3050	Zoetermeer (FC)	Emerald Talon Naval Assault Star	Tenth Donegal Guards RCT (25% strength) Twelfth Star Guards Able Battalion, Third Regiment	Jade Falcon Victory

A New ilKhan and the Year of Peace

In the immediate aftermath of Leo Showers' death it was eventually agreed that the Clans' Bloodnamed warriors would have to return to the Homeworlds and elect a new ilKhan to lead the invasion force. During the journey back to Strana Mechty, the Khans of the Jade Falcons, Smoke Jaguars and Ghost Bears conspired to use this tragedy to get back at their collective rival, Wolf Khan Ulric Kerensky, by accusing him of causing the ilKhan's death. At the suggestion of the Ghost Bear Khans it was decided that, in case he survived his trial, the Crusaders would then elect Kerensky to take Showers' place as ilKhan. While this would make him the overall warlord of the Clan invasion it would also bind him to the decisions of the Grand Council, which was firmly under the control of the Crusaders. This would also free up his position as senior Khan of Clan Wolf to be filled by a more Crusader-minded warrior, such as Loremaster Conal Ward.

When the Grand Council finally convened for their first meeting on Strana Mechty, Khan Lincoln Osis of the Smoke Jaguars made the accusation against Khan Kerensky and introduced a motion to strip him of his rank. Unfortunately he also opened the trial to testimony from a Wolf bondsman, Phelan Kell. Instead of backing up the charges as had been expected the Inner Sphere freeborn gave evidence which completely destroyed the Crusaders' case and when the final vote was tallied Khan Kerensky was found not guilty.

During this time a Trial of Possession was fought on Huntress between the Jade Falcons and Steel Vipers for the genetic legacy of Khan Elias Crichell. Though considered semiretired on account of his age, Khan Crichell personally took part in the fighting, leading three of Omega Galaxy's Clusters in combat against Clan Steel Viper's entire Gamma Galaxy. When during the course of battle the Falcons became pinned down, Khan Crichell personally led the Omega Keshik in a combat drop almost on top of the Steel Viper forces, surrounding and smashing the Fourth Viper Guards Cluster before sweeping up the rest of their units and claiming victory.

Khan Crichell returned from battle to take part in the second part of the Crusaders' conspiracy by voting Ulric Kerensky to become the new ilKhan. Unfortunately this plan began to unravel almost immediately when as his first act ilKhan Kerensky made Clan Steel Viper and Clan Nova Cat active members in the invasion and assigned them to work in conjunction with the Jade Falcons and Smoke Jaguars respectively. Furthermore the ilKhan decreed that both "partners" would have joint control of several worlds and the right to bid for possession of a world which was still experiencing insurrectionist activity. Beyond the insult of suggesting that they needed help, the Jade Falcons knew this was a ploy to slow them down since they would now have to bid against a hated enemy for the right to invade new worlds.

Regardless the Jade Falcons made preparations for the continuation of the invasion and their new difficulties. Fully expecting fierce aggression from the Steel Vipers on their Inner Sphere holdings, it was decided to keep two entire frontline Galaxies and the Emerald Talon Naval Assault Star in reserve. This combined unit: "Turkina's Talons", would serve as a quick reaction force to counter any attempts by the Steel Vipers to seize control of any jointly held or Falcon-controlled worlds. Furthermore overtures were made to Clan Snow Raven, a rival of the Steel Vipers, to win them over to the Crusader cause and provide a counterbalance to the Steel Vipers.

A final matter was what to do about the Falcon Guards, whose defeat on Twycross had so dishonored it that few warriors were willing to help rebuild the unit. It was eventually decided to give command of the Guards to Aidan Pryde, a man who himself had a tainted past, and assign the proverbial "bottom of the barrel" to replenish its ranks, even including freeborns. Though the Falcon Guards were now regarded by many as little more than a glorified garrison unit, few could foresee just how quickly Aidan Pryde would turn the unit around into an elite unit once more, or the role it would play in future events.

Fifth Wave (November-December 3051)

Grudgingly the Jade Falcons were forced to cede one of their conquered worlds to the Steel Vipers to serve as a base of operations. As a gesture of insult they gave them Waldorff, a planet thirty light-years distant from the nearest invasion corridor target. In response to this generosity the Steel Vipers decided to launch an attack on Twycross and seize control of it from the Federated Commonwealth, winning a victory at the site of the Jade Falcons' most humiliating defeat.

For the Fifth Wave Clan Jade Falcon made preparations to invade only seven worlds at the start and immediately Clan Steel Viper contested the right to invade all of them. Three of these worlds - Blair Atholl, Benfled and Jabuka - were ceded outright to the Steel Vipers and Trials of Possession fought for the other four. The Trial for Montmarault was fierce but ultimately went to the Steel Vipers, while the one for Orkney resulted in a draw and joint ownership. The fact that they were only able to attack two of the already miserly number of worlds they had original planned only further enraged the Jade Falcons' anger towards the Steel Vipers and ilKhan Kerensky.

The Fifth Wave also revealed changing attitudes among the Jade Falcon warriors when it came to fighting a war. While strict traditionalists who long upheld the honor of single combat, reports became more frequent of the Jade Falcons slowly adopting Inner Sphere tactics. This included multiple Falcon 'Mechs focusing their fire on a single target, something completely against the rules of zellbrigen. Inner Sphere commanders soon began to worry that if this trend became more widespread they would lose their best advantage over the Clans.

The news that ilKhan Kerensky had negotiated a Trial of Possession to take place on Tukayyid against ComStar for control of Terra was met with some skepticism at first, but eventually the Khans of the invading Clans were convinced to back it. Seeing the chance for an easy victory against the untested Com Guards, the bidding to be among the first to assault the planet and so win glory was fierce. Both Jade Falcon Khans were able to win a good position for their Clan and felt sufficiently avenged against Clan Wolf for the humiliation they had suffered under the ilKhan. Now the fate of the invasion would be decided with the Battle of Tukayyid.

Fifth Wave

Date	Location	Attacker	Defender	Outcome
November 3051	Alyina (FC)	Turkina Keshik Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster First Falcon Velites	Tenth Lyran Guards RCT	Jade Falcon Victory
November 3051	Montmarault (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy 305th Assault Cluster	Alpha Galaxy First Viper Guards	Steel Viper Victory
November 3051	Orkney (FC)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy First Falcon Striker Cluster	Delta Galaxy 104th Assault Cluster	Draw
December 3051	La Grave (FC)	Peregrine Galaxy Fourth Falcon Talon Cluster Ninety-fourth Striker Cluster	Fifth Davion Guards RCT (65% strength)	Jade Falcon Victory
December 3051	Quarell (FRR)	Gyrfalcon Galaxy	Quarell 'Mech Battalion	Jade Falcon Victory

Bibliography

• Field Manual: Warden Clans
• Invading Clans
• Jade Falcon Sourcebook