House Kurita: The Draconis Combine

Rating:

Reviewed by:
David "MacAttack" McCulloch

House Kurita: The Draconis Combine
FASA 1987 ISBN 1-55560-039-5

The Product:

First of the "House Books" to be published, House Kurita would set the pattern that would be reused in the others to cover the Great Houses.

The first section presents a detailed history of the rise of the Kurita family and the creation of the Draconis Combine. Running from events in the twentieth century up to the end of the third Succession War in 3025, the book presents the events that shaped this major player in the events of the Successor States.

A section on the social and political structure of the Combine in 3025 is provided followed by a detailed look at the organization of the DCMS. This section includes thumbnail unit descriptions for the Mech Regiments of the Combine, along with nicely produced color unit insignia. This is followed by details of ranks and awards, once more supported by color art. Sections on the major industries and culture in House Kurita finish this part of the book.

The final elements of the book consists of a section that outlines the major personalities of the Draconis Combine in this era and an Atlas section that includes detail of major planets within Kurita space.

A foldout map of the Draconis Combine is included in the back cover, along with a family tree of House Kurita.

The Good:

The quality of the writing is engaging and the run of the narrative manages to avoid becoming repetitive. Although hardly classified as light reading material, it is an invaluable insight into part of the Inner Sphere.

The quality of the artwork varies throughout the book, but nothing stands out as truly dreadful and there are also some nicely executed items.

The Bad:

The inclusion of additional maps to show the extent of the Draconis Combine during different periods in history would have been a welcome addition. No official maps have ever been produced, and the narrative only touches on key worlds and events.

You will probably read and reread this book until it falls apart (I know one of mine eventually did - but don't worry, I got another one). I'm not saying it is poorly bound, just that it would have been nice to have a hardback book able to cope with the wear and tear better.

Continuity:

As part of the foundation that the development of the BattleTech storyline was built, the House Book does not contradict itself. Being one of the early products, there was also little in print to be contradicted.

After so many changes in the BattleTech universe, there are many developments not covered in this work. Characters, such as Yorinaga Kurita and his Genyosha receive no mention, that unit being formed after 3025. However Yorinaga's disgrace at the hands of the Kell Hounds is also missing, those events yet not having been created by Mr. Stackpole.

The Ghost Regiments and Ryoken likewise are not covered, and the Clans naturally receive no mention. Although the Minnesota Tribe raids are recounted, the mysterious origins of that group, nor their fate, are never addressed.

Events at the tail end of the twentieth century are, not unsurprisingly, just slightly wrong (when compared to real life). However these events have a minimal impact on the flow of the rest of "history" and so can be considered the result of poor bookkeeping.

The last thirty years of the game history have seen so much of the original Lostech setting brushed aside.

Conclusion:

The amount of work involved in creating one thousand years of history is truly mind-boggling. Although an astute reader can pick out events and ideas filched from ancient and modern history, such plagiarism is excusable when the scale of the task in compiling the House Book is considered.

By creating a book that also looks at the culture and politics, FASA succeeded in creating something that portrays the Draconis Combine as more that just a bunch of Katana wielding maniacs. Whether you consider the Combine your "home" or an enemy, you will want this book for the information contained.

I have no reservations about awarding 5 Timber Wolves to this one. If you are a Kurita fan, you will quite likely have it (or be plotting how to acquire a copy).

The Story Continues:

Recently, a PDF version of this work has become available, giving everybody who missed out on the early years a chance to see what they missed.

An update for the Inner Sphere was provided in the form of the "20 Years Update", which covered events up to just before the beginning of the Clan Invasion. More recently the "Inner Sphere" publication has a condensed version of the history, bringing things up to the 3063 timeframe. The sections of the military are greatly expanded and updated in the Field Manual: Draconis Combine.