The Thessalonica Legacy

by Dashukta

GLOSSARY

The Thessalonica Legacy
Glossary & Author’s Notes

Thank you for reading The Thessalonica Legacy. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. This document is not part of the story, but is instead intended to serve as supplemental material.
I wish to thank my wife, “ikrits,” who read every word, served as my proofreader and editor, and encouraged me to pursue this little project.

For more information of BattleTech and the BattleTech universe, please visit http://www.classicbattletech.com. I am not affiliated, I just really like the game and universe and will take any opportunity to plug it.

Oh, and also, >>Shameless Plug<<

Glossary of Terminology
Many, if not most, BattleTech novels include a short supplement at the end that includes a glossary of terms specific to the BattleTech universe. Hopefully, if I did my job correctly, such a glossary is not strictly needed. However, I have included one here for completeness.

Autocannon: a rapid-firing, autoloading weapon which fires streams of high-speed, high-explosive, armor-piercing shells.
BattleMech: Generally humanoid robotic walking tanks; the premier weapons of war in the BattleTech universe. Standing between 10 and 15 meters tall and massing between 20 and 100 tons, they are powered by a small fusion engine and artificial “muscles” called myomers. They are piloted by a single person, the MechWarrior. Often abbreviated as ‘Mech.
ComStar: Private semi-mystical organization which controls interstellar communications by owning and controlling the hyperpulse generator communications network. The Word of Blake is a splinter group of ComStar which follows a more fanatical quasi-religious path.
Inner Sphere: Region of interstellar space centered around Earth and extending out to the borders of the Successor States. Comprises over 2000 inhabited star systems in a radius of approximately 450-550 light years from Earth. Everything beyond the borders of the Inner Sphere is termed the Periphery.
LosTech: portmanteau of “lost technology,” generally refers to technology and artifacts for which the knowledge of manufacture has been lost.
LRM: abbreviation for “Long Range Missile,” an indirect-fire missile weapon with a high-explosive warhead. LRMs fire salvos of 5, 10, 15, or 20 missiles at a time depending on the launcher.
Star League: Founded in 2571 as an attempt to unify the major states of the Inner Sphere, the Star League flourished for almost 200 years before its collapse at the onset of the Succession Wars. The League is generally considered a “golden age” of technological advancement.
Successor States: The five main star empires which rule the Inner Sphere. They are: the Capellan Confederation (House Liao), and the Draconis Combine (House Kurita), the Federated Suns (House Davion), the Free Worlds League (House Marik), and the Lyran Alliance (House Steiner).

Technical Readout
Another common feature of many BattleTech novels is a small collection of artwork depicting vehicles which play prominent roles in the story.

VLK-QD1 Valkyrie: http://www.sarna.net/wiki/images/d/da/Vlk-qd1_valkyrie.jpg
Leopard DropShip: http://www.sarna.net/wiki/images/2/2b/Leopard.gif
Scout JumpShip: http://www.sarna.net/wiki/images/4/49/Scout.gif
OSR-3D Osiris: http://www.sarna.net/wiki/images/1/17/Osiris.jpg
SYU-2B Sha Yu: http://www.sarna.net/wiki/images/7/7f/Sha_Yu.gif
Po Heavy Tank: http://www.sarna.net/wiki/images/6/66/Po.jpg

I’ve been asked about information on the planet Valexa. Unfortunately, such information does not seem to exist in any BattleTech publications. The only concrete information is its location (X:122.67 Y:-88.15). The only other information avilable reguards the Valexa March Militia (1 ‘Mech regiment, 2 Aerospace Wings, 1 vehicle regiment, and 6 infantry regiments as of 3062, according to “Field Manual: Federated Suns”).