Legacy (Anthology)
Sarna News
| |
| Legacy (Anthology) | |
|---|---|
| Product information | |
| Type | Anthology |
| Author | Alan Brundage Aaron Cahall Alex Fauth Jason Hansa Travis Heermann Chris Hussey Robert Jeschonek Kevin Killiany Philip A. Lee Darrell Myers Craig A. Reed Geoff Swift |
| Development | John Helfers (Editor) Philip A. Lee (Editor) |
| Pages | 280 |
| Cover Artwork | Des Hanley |
| Interior Artwork | Franz Vohwinkel |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Product code | 35826 |
| First published | 17 August 2017 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1941582312 |
| MSRP | 11.95 US$ |
| Content | |
| Era | (see text) |
Legacy (subtitle: A BattleTech Anthology) is a print anthology of thirteen short stories from different authors, plus a foreword by editor Philip A. Lee and an "About the Authors" section.
Although described as an anthology, it can arguably be described as a serial novel as the individual short story episodes narrate the overarching story of a single individual BattleMech, a Grasshopper—tentatively called the "Legacy Grasshopper"—as it is passed down from one MechWarrior to the next over a span of three centuries.
Contents
From the back cover
| “ | LIFE IS CHEAP. BATTLEMECHS ARE NOT.
A Draconis Combine warrior struggles with immoral orders in the First Succession War. A House Davion MechWarrior participates in a risky heist as part of Operation Guerrero. A history buff battles the Word of Blake during the Liberation of Terra. What do these MechWarriors have in common? Each one pilots the same BattleMech, a survivor that has been repaired and rebuilt countless times throughout its long and bloody 300-year lifespan. |
” |
Stories
What's in a Name?
| What's in a Name? | |
|---|---|
| Story information | |
| Author | Kevin Killiany |
| Pages | 14 |
| Type | Short story |
| Product | Legacy (Anthology) |
| Content | |
| Timeline | 27 March 2779 - 13 April 2830 |
Working on prototype #5 of the GHR 'Mech design project in 2779 (the very 'Mech that will become the Legacy Grasshopper), engineer Lucia Cavaletta had a breakthrough design idea and within just sixteen hours hand-built a prototype of a device (a fluidic actuator), solving a design problem that had stymied the team for some time until now. Just as she engraves the masterpiece with her signature after having entered its specifications into the database, the facility is infiltrated and Cavaletta is captured and tortured to death over two hours for information on the project. However, it is later discovered that Cavaletta managed to mislead the intruders into stealing critically flawed design specs for an earlier prototype instead of her most recent invention. Grasshopper had been a relatively obscure naming suggestion by Cavaletta for the GHR project; it is implied that the design was later actually named Grasshopper (instead of Ghost Hunter, an earlier project name) in her honor.
The hand-crafted component prototype she built that night turns up on Le Blanc in 2830, reportedly salvaged from a Draconis Combine "kamikaze" 'Mech (implicitly one destroyed in one of the Combine's Chain Gang missions). The techs note that it is masterfully built, performs well over specifications, and is signed like a piece of art.
Swords of Light and Darkness
| Swords of Light and Darkness | |
|---|---|
| Story information | |
| Author | Travis Heermann |
| Pages | 21 |
| Type | Short story |
| Product | Legacy (Anthology) |
| Content | |
| Timeline | 11 September 2796 - 17 April 2797 |
During the latter days of the Kentares Massacre, Tai-i Sam Tanaka of the Sixth Sword of Light regiment resolves to hide a fugitive local girl in his Grasshopper to at least give her a few days of relative comfort; intellectually, he knows that he will ultimately be unable to save her life, and will likely be executed for treason for not killing the girl outright.
Flashbacks reveal how Tanaka's morale, and that of his entire unit, was worn down by the atrocious mass murder they were ordered to commit on the entire planet's population, how he tries to reconcile this reality with his bushido ideals of honor and duty, and how he no longer cares about his individual fate.
Fates and Fortunes
| Fates and Fortunes | |
|---|---|
| Story information | |
| Author | Darrell Myers |
| Pages | 19 |
| Type | Short story |
| Product | Legacy (Anthology) |
| Content | |
| Timeline | 11 October 2840 - 23 April 2843 |
Carl Lipetsk is a tech with the Capellan Cuirassiers BattleMech unit currently stationed on Phact. He is painfully aware of the elevated status of MechWarriors, whereas the supporting armor and infantry units are largely forgotten and the technical staff completely ignored.
Having noted the unique workmanship of a GHR-5H Grasshopper in the unit, Lipetsk had reached out to the manufacturer, Lantren Corporation. On 11 October 2840 he receives a verigraph message from Lantren offering him a full factory overhaul at no cost in return for allowing Lantren to analyze the 'Mech and how it weathered the war until now. The 'Mech is shipped out to Bryant on 27 October, but shortly after takeoff the DropShip carrying it (the Silent Sword) is shot down by Marik raiders and crashlands. Two days later, Carl and Andrea arrive at the crash site and begin salvage operations. They discover the Grasshopper in a damaged but salvageable state. Although not trained as MechWarriors, the two techs attempt to evade approaching Marik 'Mechs and manage to hold them off long enough for friendly reinforcements to arrive. Andrea is heavily wounded in the process, though.
Carl makes restoring the Grasshopper a prestige project for the technical staff, to give them focus and a goal. Owing to frequent damage when the patched-together 'Mech has to be sent into combat, the work is still unfinished when the Lantren Corporation facility on Bryant is destroyed by raiders on 18 March 2843. (Ironically, it is a GHR-5H Grasshopper 'Mech that delivers the crippling blow to the facility.) Back on Phact, where Andrea has since died of her injuries, Carl is saddened by the news that the factory was destroyed and that there will thus be no factory overhaul for the Grasshopper after all. But he resolves to fix the shot-up machine up by himself instead, part for part, for the Chancellor and to honor Andrea's memory.
The Forgotten Places
| The Forgotten Places | |
|---|---|
| Story information | |
| Author | Alan Brundage |
| Pages | 12 |
| Type | Short story |
| Product | Legacy (Anthology) |
| Content | |
| Timeline | 12 - 25 April 2973 |
 | This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
One Man's Trash
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
Lightning Strike
by Geoff Swift
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
Choices and Chances
by Chris Hussey
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
The Third Pillar
by Jason Hansa
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
Earthbound
by Aaron Cahall
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
Underfoot
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
Homecoming
by Alex Fauth
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
End of the Road
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |
Epilogue: Where Legends Come to Rest
| This Section looks to be a Stub This section is a stub (i.e., in need of additional material). You can help us by expanding it. Please remove this tag when that effort is complete. |