Gibson

Gibson
Gibson 3151.svg
System Information
X:Y Coordinates-245.811 : -215.127[e]
Spectral classG2V[1]
Recharge time183 hours[1]
Recharge station(s)Zenith[1]

System Description[edit]

Gibson is located near the Clipperton and Tapachula systems.

Political Affiliation[edit]


Gibson III[edit]

Gibson III
Gibson.jpg
Astrophysical
System positionThird[1]
Jump Point distance9 days[1]
Moons2 (Unity, Understanding)[1]
Geophysical
Surface gravity1.0[1]
Atmospheric pressureStandard (Breathable)[1]
Equatorial temperature38°C (Arid)[1]
Surface water59%[1]
Highest native lifeMammal[1], 10%[33]
Landmasses1 (Matrah)[34]
History and Culture
Population4,137,000,000 (3025),[33]
4,220,000,000 (3067),[34]
4,241,000,000 (3072),[1][24][25]
4,250,000,000 (3076)[35]
Government and Infrastructure
Noble RulerCount of Gibson,
Prince Ballala Patekar (3067)[34]
Political LeaderPrincipal of Gibson
Military CommanderPrecentor Apollyon (3072[24][25]–3076[35])
CapitalPortent[34]
HPG ClassA[1][33]
HPG RepresentativePrecentor Mildred Apanno (3025),[33]
Precentor William Blane (3067)[34]

Planetary History[edit]

Gibson was terraformed from nearly-dry rock into a thriving, habitable planet. At the beginning only 20% of planet was covered by water, but when the Ryan Ice Cartel started the transformation process the planet reached nearly 70% water coverage, the new lands became great agricultural centers and so population of the planet boomed. Known for their tolerance to various cultures the process accelerated reaching over four billion citizens by 3072.[1]

Roughly 150 years prior to 3055 (around the year 2900), Gibson broke away from the Principality of Regulus over religion and taxation issues.[36]

Also as of 3055, House Dystar ruled over Gibson and Countess Dystar had installed an incompetent local Principal names Hsiang. The people of Gibson appealed to Countess Dystar and to the Captain-General of the Free Worlds League but their pleas fell on deaf ears; Dystar, like her predecessors before her, profited from the situation and actively sought to hide it from the Captain-General. The famous tolerance of Gibson caused the Word of Blake to use it as a refuge world after the ComStar Schism with the Captain-General's permission. Gibson natives resented the Word's unwanted intrusion, and from 3053 onward there were disputes between the Word of Blake Militia and a local group of dissenters known as the Gibson Freedom League. The Captain-General sent the First Knights of the Inner Sphere to quell the unrest, and though some of it was defused, it was not until 3055 that a tactical nuclear warhead, allegedly deployed by the Freedom League, brought the fighting to a swift conclusion. After this, the Freedom League was scattered and its leadership in Word custody, and the Blakists were able to exploit Gibson's manufacturing resources to their fullest.[37]

Soon they began to impose their beliefs on the locals, as well as cooperating with Gibson companies, notably using Gibson Federated BattleMechs to produce the Grand Crusader.[38]

The Jihad[edit]

Gibson was annexed to the Word of Blake Protectorate in December of 3067.[37] On 9 August 3071, the government of the Free Worlds League rump state on Atreus ceded Gibson to the Word of Blake—or, more specifically, to Precentor Apollyon of the Manei Domini.[24][25] After the rebels from the NGFL attempted to sabotage the Gibson Federated BattleMechs and tried to assassinate Demi Precentor Vapula, Apollyon then led his Fifty-second Shadow Division through the capital city of Portent and purged all remaining traces of the NGFL.[37]

Almost two years to the day after the Word of Blake officially took control of Gibson, the planet was attacked by forces from the Principality of Regulus. The task force was formed by the Fourth Regulan Hussars as the foundation for Operation VIJAY with mercenary support from the Thirteenth Stalking Horse, the Wild Geese, and several smaller mercenary formation (the Deadly Burns, Doomsday Brigade, Herculan Muster and Johannes' Sting) and gave operational command to retired Regulan General Tomaso Kinchuhara.[37]

The Regulan fleet attacked on 13 August 3073, initially meeting no resistance as they entered the system; however, the ground forces landed by the Regulans were almost completely eradicated by the planets defenders. Leading the Word of Blake defense were two of the infamous Shadow Divisions, the Forty-ninth and Fifty-second. With the Regulan ground offensive firmly defeated, Word of Blake WarShips appeared in-system and shattered the Regulan naval forces, with only a few survivors escaping.[39][40] Apollyon forced the smaller mercenary commands to surrender, and both Shadow Divisions hunted down the rest of the invaders.[37] Among those units destroyed or badly mauled were the Fourth Regulan Hussars, the Thirteenth Stalking Horse and the Wild Geese; a few damaged units managed to escape from the surface of the planet by DropShip after the Wild Geese sold themselves dearly to buy time, but the losses taken by the Regulan forces overall was compared to the casualties taken in the earliest days of the Clan Invasion.[41]

Forces from the Principality of Regulus returned to the Gibson system on 21 December 3078. A task force consisting of numerous JumpShips loaded with assault DropShips, troopships and fighter carriers entered the system via a pirate point, and four days later the Regulan task force began a planetary bombardment. The bombardment was conducted on a global basis and eradicated the bulk of the Word of Blake leadership; the Regulans targeted every major population center and industrial site on the surface, scouring the world. Despite the massive bombardment, the Word of Blake figure known as The Master managed to escape off-world, allegedly making for the nearby world of Paradise.[42] The Regulan task force did manage to destroy the Eagle-class Bedevere and the Impavido-class Impavido in the Gibson system, two of the former Free Worlds League Navy WarShips that the Blakists had suborned early in the Jihad.[43]

The Regulans then conducted a conventional assault on the planet, beginning on 5 January 3079 and continuing through to the 23rd of February. The Regulans specifically hunted for any surviving Manei Domini forces; despite Gibson having been reduced to a ruined, hellish world by the extended planetary bombardment, several surviving Blakist units were found and destroyed by the Regulan forces.[42] By 3085, Gibson was recorded as a dead or dying world[28] and both the Forty-first and Fifty-second Shadow Divisions had been destroyed.[44]

Military Deployment[edit]

2765[edit]

3050[edit]

3055[edit]

3071[edit]

Geography[edit]

Gibson has a single continent named Matrah.[34]

Planetary Locations[edit]

  • Harrisburg: a city[49]
  • Nagasaki Valley[50]
  • Portent: the planetary capital city[34]
  • Castle Dystar[54]
  • Old City
  • Principal's Palace[48]
  • Portent Spaceport[54]
  • Camp Sims: Word of Blake Garrison in 3055[55]
  • Fort Tukayyid: Word of Blake Garrison in 3055[55]

Industrial Centers[edit]

Image gallery[edit]

Notes[edit]

^ Handbook: House Marik identifies Gibson as having only one continent named Matrah, although the earlier publication Ideal War references a continent named Jakarta.

Map Gallery[edit]

Nearby Systems[edit]

Closest 36 systems (35 within 60 light-years)
Distance in light years, closest systems first:
Clipperton 11.1 Tapachula 15.0 Chagos 21.0 Molokai 23.4
Hongqiao 25.6 Sparta 27.3 Fadiffolu 27.7 Ankolika 29.3
Mackenzie 30.6 Tuamotu 31.3 Ibarra 33.9 Isabela 37.1
Aconcagua 38.8 Jiddah 39.6 Hiratsuka 40.3 Mohács 40.9
Norfolk 42.6 Ellsworth 43.1 Futuna 43.6 Lengkong 44.4
Atsugi 46.3 Katlehong 46.5 Trinidad 46.9 Rzhishchev 49.2
Bismarck 49.9 Newcastle 50.6 Wallis 51.7 Cajamarca 52.3
Sardis 53.7 Karachi 54.4 Alta 54.6 Tematagi 57.2
Mankova 57.3 Westover 58.9 Faleolo 59.5 Home 60.8

References[edit]

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 BattleTech: 25 Years of Art & Fiction, p. 215: "Planet Info"
  2. Handbook: House Marik, p. 16
  3. Handbook: House Marik, p. 24
  4. Historical: Reunification War, p. 158
  5. Era Report: 2750, p. 36
  6. Field Manual: SLDF, p. vii: "Inner Sphere - [2764] Map"
  7. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 10
  8. First Succession War, pp. 24–25
  9. Handbook: House Marik, p. 34
  10. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 2, pp. 122–123
  11. First Succession War, pp. 112–113
  12. Handbook: House Marik, p. 38
  13. House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. vii: "Free Worlds League - [3025] Map"
  14. Handbook: House Marik, p. 42
  15. Handbook: House Marik, p. 51
  16. Historical: War of 3039, p. 132
  17. Era Report: 3052, p. 10
  18. Era Report: 3052, p. 22
  19. Era Report: 3062, p. 10
  20. Handbook: House Marik, p. 54
  21. Era Report: 3062, p. 29
  22. Handbook: House Marik, p. 56
  23. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 43
  24. 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 Jihad Hot Spots: 3076, p. 17: "Timeline of the Jihad"
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 49: "The Jihad In Review"
  26. Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents, p. 64
  27. Field Report: FWLM, p. 19
  28. 28.0 28.1 Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 62
  29. Field Manual: 3085, p. vii: "Inner Sphere - [3085] Map"
  30. Era Report: 3145, p. 10
  31. Era Report: 3145, p. 38
  32. Field Manual: 3145, p. vi: "Inner Sphere - [3145] Map"
  33. 33.0 33.1 33.2 33.3 House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. 156: "Gibson" planet profile
  34. 34.0 34.1 34.2 34.3 34.4 34.5 34.6 Handbook: House Marik, p. 73: "Gibson" planet profile
  35. 35.0 35.1 Masters and Minions: The StarCorps Dossiers, p. 222: "Gibson" planet profile
  36. Ideal War
  37. 37.0 37.1 37.2 37.3 37.4 Total Chaos, pp. 127–129: "Gibson"
  38. ComStar, p. 102
  39. Jihad Hot Spots: 3076, pp. 31, 34: "Timeline of the Jihad"
  40. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 52: "The Jihad In Review"
  41. Jihad Hot Spots: 3076, pp. 41–42: "Chaos Overwhelming: Dante's Daydream"
  42. 42.0 42.1 Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 60: "The Jihad in Review"
  43. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 128: "Captured Ships"
  44. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 125: "Shadow Divisions"
  45. Field Report 2765: FWLM, p. 10: "Regimental Status"
  46. 20 Year Update, p. 71: "Com Guards Deployment Table"
  47. Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents, p. 110: "Word of Blake Mercenary Deployments"
  48. 48.0 48.1 Ideal War, ch. 6
  49. Double-Blind, Prologue
  50. Ideal War, ch. 9
  51. 51.0 51.1 Ideal War, ch. 14
  52. Ideal War, ch. 11
  53. Ideal War, ch. 19
  54. 54.0 54.1 Ideal War, ch. 7
  55. 55.0 55.1 ComStar, p. 94
  56. Handbook: House Marik, p. 127: "Brigadier Corporation (BrigCorp)"
  57. House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. 126: "Free Worlds Defense Industries"
  58. 58.0 58.1 Handbook: House Marik, p. 140: "Kensai Holographiks (KnHolo) - Laurent InfoMedia (Unlisted) "

Bibliography[edit]