Rochelle

Rochelle
Rochelle 3151.svg
System Information
X:Y Coordinates-113.791 : -15.815[e]
Spectral classK7V[1]
Planet(s)6[1]

The Rochelle system is the location of at least one habitable world, Rochelle II, and as of June 3152 was located in the Covenant Worlds within the Free Worlds League.[2]

System Description[edit]

Rochelle is located near the Kalidasa and Solaris systems.

Political Affiliation[edit]


Rochelle II[edit]

Rochelle II
Astrophysical
System positionSecond[1]
Jump Point distance4 days[1]
Moons3 (Derika, Nohea, Ululani), plus dust ring[1]
Geophysical
Surface gravity0.74[1]
Atmospheric pressureStandard (Tainted)[1]
Equatorial temperature40°C[1]
Surface water86%[1]
Highest native lifeReptiles[1]
Landmasses2 (Caredon, Martinasia)[1]
History and Culture
Population1,710,000,000 (3130)[41][1]
Government and Infrastructure
Political LeaderPlanetary Governor
Military CommanderLegate Piotr Illiarveski (3130)[41][1]
CapitalNew Arzenburg[1]

Planetary History[edit]

Early History[edit]

One of the first worlds settled by humans, Rochelle II featured a large amount of mineral resources that could be easily exploited, abundant surface water, and rich soil perfect for agriculture. Though after the fall of the Terran Alliance it joined the Federation of Skye, eventually Rochelle would become part of the Free Worlds League.[1] Captain-General Peter Marik captured Rochelle in 2417 or 2418 as part of a military campaign against the Lyran Commonwealth in response to Lyran efforts to capture the world of Dieudonné. Peter Marik intentionally went against the wishes of the Free Worlds League Parliament when he seized control of Rochelle; the Parliament was attempting to create an armistice, but Peter felt that the mining operations on Rochelle outweighed the concerns of Parliament, and was able to capture Rochelle in part because of how lightly defended the planet was. Peter's actions in capturing Rochelle brought him into direct conflict with Parliament, resulting in Parliament producing the War Powers Act, severely limiting the authority given to the Captain-General.[5]

The Succession Wars[edit]

During the first two Succession Wars, Rochelle was the victim of strikes by nuclear and chemical weapons, which poisoned most of the world and destroyed its industrial infrastructure.[1] During a lull in the conflict in 2863 that presaged the eventual armistice ending the Second Succession War Captain-General Philippa Marik - who had assumed the title after the death of her brother Gerald in 2861 - came under increasing pressure to disband part of the Free Worlds League Military to allow funding to be redirected to reconstruct the League's damaged industrial base, and to relinquish the powers available to her under Resolution 288. Philippa resisted both calls, but did dispatch some of her surviving enclaves of scientists to Rochelle to help rebuild the industrial base there, as well as to the worlds of Andurien, Danais and Ryerson. Unfortunately, the scientists found Rochelle to be virtually unsalvageable.[42]

The Free Worlds League government attempted to evacuate Rochelle,[42] but despite this a hardcore group of inhabitants remained behind to mine the ores needed by the Free Worlds League. Despite the best effort of local and regional governments and citizens, the population continued to decline and the economy continued to falter. Alongside these downward trends was the loss of more and more infrastructure, thus perpetuating the cycle of decline.[1]

In 3007 the Lyran Commonwealth attacked Rochelle, and the Free Worlds League defended with mostly small mercenary commands. The fighting was drawn-out and inflicted heavy casualties on both sides, destroying many mercenary commands in League employ. One of the notable combatants was the mercenary command McFinney's Manglers, under the command of Cranston Snord who had won it in a poker game. The unit fought under the League banner for a year in exchange for debts they owned being written off; the Manglers managed to weather the campaign in good shape, even expanding somewhat in size through absorbing 'Mechs and their pilots from shattered mercenary commands. The League subsequently betrayed the surviving mercenary commands on Rochelle in the aftermath of the invasion; Captain-General Janos Marik's lawyers attempted to use unclear salvage clauses in the various mercenary contracts to confiscate the equipment belonging to the mercenaries, so that it could be used to rebuild damaged FWLM commands. The League's actions led to a mercenary uprising led by McFinney's Manglers, culminating in a fight to escape off-world, with the mercenaries successfully breaking out through the exhausted League forces via the planetary spaceport located at the decaying planetary capital, Arzenburg. One of the casualties in the battle was Melvin McFinney, securing Cranston Snord's hold over the Manglers. The unit would famously reform into Snord's Irregulars.[16][17]

Snord's Irregulars returned to Rochelle after a few years, to search for antique photographs in the city archives of Trivis. The raid encountered much more resistance than anticipated, tangling with a League 'Mech company in the vicinity of the Trivis city hall while recovering the photographs from the vault below the city hall, but the Irregulars managed to escape after detonating a building filled with petrochemicals.[43]

The Jihad[edit]

During the Jihad the Lyran Commonwealth raided the world in retaliation for attacks they thought came from the FWL. These raids smashed more infrastructure and destroyed the capital city, accelerating the world's decline.[1]

In 3071, a new branch of Alys Rousset-Marik's resistance group made its existence known in violent fashion at the start of the new year by blowing up an Irian System Services building in downtown Ruckabal. The local efforts by the still-training Rochelle Protectorate Militia Division had failed and the WoB sent part of the Opacus Venatori to hunt them. Demi-Precentor Kendali Morris and Adept Achillius St. John along two squads of battle armor crushed the rebels after breaking their ambush, ending their resistance.[44]

In 3076, Stone's Coalition invaded Rochelle. The July deployment of Stone's Lament's Recon Squad Four laid the groundwork for an attack, as the squad disabled the local Blakist Space Defense System. This allowed the Coalition's fleet to land with minimal casualties.[28]

Dark Age[edit]

Only after the world was ceded to the Republic of the Sphere and large numbers of new colonists arrived has the planet's situation started to reverse. The planetary capital, New Arzenburg, expanded significantly during the Dark Age, with a major expansion to the spaceport being completed in the early thirty-second century, allowing ores mined on Caredon to be shipped more widely. Despite the resurgence of economic activity and industry on Rochelle, the southern continent of Martinasia stayed largely abandoned during the Dark Age because of the combination of lingering radiation and environmental hazards such as acid rain, the lasting effects of the First and Second Succession Wars.[1]

Following the Blackout and the Republic's withdrawal behind the Wall, Rochelle became a member of the Protectorate Coalition by 3137. As a result, the world briefly rejoined the resurrected Free Worlds League two years later, but the Silver Hawk Irregulars were unable to prevent the Lyran Commonwealth taking Rochelle soon after, and the Wolf Empire in turn had seized the planet by 3143.[34][35][36][37][45]

ilClan Era[edit]

After Alaric Ward invaded Terra with virtually the entire Wolf Empire touman, Rochelle was left practically defenseless. As a result, when elements of the Second Covenant Guards landed on the world in November 3151 they faced little resistance from Rochelle's mostly non-Clan-affiliated population and easily reclaimed it for the Free Worlds League.[40]

Military Deployment[edit]

Geography[edit]

Rochelle has two continents, Caredon and Martinasia. Caredon lies in Rochelle's northern hemisphere, while Martinasia is in the southern hemisphere.[1] Rochelle is a rainy world with violent thunderstorms.[43]

Planetary Locations[edit]

  • Australind: a city, the site of MediQuick's headquarters until it left Rochelle[54]
  • Awalla Fens: a Yumba tree-filled swamp[55]
  • Arzenburg: the planetary capital city prior to the end of the Jihad[1]
  • Caredonian Wind Forest: a thick and tall forest near the Awalla Fens, with a towering canopy of Yorkwood trees[56]
  • New Arzenburg: the planetary capital city during the Dark Age[1]
  • Trivis: a city on Rochelle[43]

Industrial Centers[edit]

Local Flora and Fauna[edit]

Map Gallery[edit]

Nearby Systems[edit]

Closest 56 systems (53 within 60 light-years)
Distance in light years, closest systems first:
Kalidasa 10.8 Solaris 12.2 Alkes 15.0 Gniezno 15.1
New Hope 17.1 Amity 21.3 Uhuru 25.5 Zaniah 26.1
Shiloh 27.8 Aquileia 28.1 Algorab 29.6 New Kyoto 30.1
Catroxx 30.8 Alhena 31.3 Kolobrzeg 34.0 Concord 35.0
Adhafera 36.4 Stewart 36.5 Tania Borealis 37.4 Pardeau 37.4
Rahne 37.7 Gacrux 38.1 Wing 38.9 Chertan 39.1
Dieudonné 39.9 Phecda 41.8 Danais 42.2 Dubhe 43.2
Vindemiatrix 44.3 Fianna 45.7 Savannah 46.0 Helm 46.8
Merak 46.9 Remulac 46.9 Wyatt 47.1 Alchiba 49.3
Callison 51.2 Hyde 51.9 Lamon 52.5 Milton 52.8
Caledonia 53.5 Launam 53.5 Bordon 53.7 Grobin 54.5
Marcus 54.9 Tania Australis 55.8 Bondurant 57.2 Nathan 57.3
Carsphairn 57.6 Nestor 57.7 Alcor 59.4 New Dallas 59.6
Sarpsborg 60.0 Cor Caroli 60.2 Alphard 60.4 Alioth 62.4

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 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 1.24 1.25 Dark Age: Republic Worlds (3130), p. 196: "Rochelle"
  2. 2.0 2.1 Empire Alone, p. 78: "The Free Worlds League June 3152" (Map)
  3. Handbook: House Marik, p. 16: "Free Worlds League Founding [2271]"
  4. Handbook: House Steiner, p. 13
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. 15: "Struggle Between Marik and Parliament"
  6. Handbook: House Marik, p. 24: "Free Worlds League after Age of War [2571] Map"
  7. Historical: Reunification War, p. 159: "Inner Sphere - 2596"
  8. Era Report: 2750, p. 37: "Inner Sphere - 2750"
  9. Historical: Liberation of Terra Volume 1, p. 11: "Inner Sphere - 2765"
  10. First Succession War, pp. 24–25: "Inner Sphere - [2786] Map"
  11. First Succession War, p. 78: "Rochelle and Kalidasa"
  12. Handbook: House Marik, p. 34: "Free Worlds League after First Succession War [2822] Map"
  13. First Succession War, pp. 112–113: "Inner Sphere - [2822] Map"
  14. Handbook: House Marik, p. 38: "Free Worlds League after Second Succession War [2864] Map"
  15. Second Succession War, pp. 78–79: "Inner Sphere - [2864] Map"
  16. 16.0 16.1 Cranston Snord's Irregulars, p. 2
  17. 17.0 17.1 Twins
  18. Handbook: House Marik, p. 42: "Free Worlds League after Third Succession War [3025] Map"
  19. Handbook: House Marik, p. 51: "Free Worlds League after Fourth Succession War [3030] Map"
  20. Historical: War of 3039, p. 133: "Inner Sphere - 3040"
  21. Era Report: 3052, p. 11: "Inner Sphere [3050] Map"
  22. Era Report: 3052, p. 25: "Inner Sphere [3052] Map"
  23. Era Report: 3062, p. 11: "Inner Sphere [3057] Map"
  24. Handbook: House Marik, p. 54: "Free Worlds League after Operation Guerrero [3058] Map"
  25. Era Report: 3062, p. 29: "Inner Sphere [3063] Map"
  26. 26.0 26.1 Field Manual: Updates, p. 159: "Free Worlds League Deployment Table"
  27. Jihad Secrets: The Blake Documents, p. 64: "Inner Sphere [3075] Map"
  28. 28.0 28.1 The Fires of Hell - Burnout
  29. Field Report: FWLM, p. 17: "FWLM Deployment Map [3079]"
  30. Jihad: Final Reckoning, p. 63: "Inner Sphere Map - [March 3081]"
  31. Field Manual: 3085, p. vii: "Inner Sphere Map - [October 3085]"
  32. Era Digest: Dark Age, p. 12: "Map of the Inner Sphere - 3130"
  33. Era Report: 3145, p. 10: "Inner Sphere - 3135"
  34. 34.0 34.1 To Ride the Chimera, ch. 1 (PDF version)
  35. 35.0 35.1 Map of Free Worlds League at time of 3139 reformation
  36. 36.0 36.1 Era Report: 3145, p. 39: "Lyran Commonwealth losses 3139-3145" (Map)
  37. 37.0 37.1 Era Report: 3145, p. 105, Antoinette Labov profile
  38. Era Report: 3145, p. 39: "Inner Sphere - 3145"
  39. Shattered Fortress, pp. 102–103: "Inner Sphere - 3151" (Map)
  40. 40.0 40.1 Empire Alone, p. 52
  41. 41.0 41.1 Dark Age: Republic of the Sphere, p. 18: "Prefecture VIII"
  42. 42.0 42.1 House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. 36: "Last Chance for Peace"
  43. 43.0 43.1 43.2 Cranston Snord's Irregulars, pp. 22–23: "Return of the Snord"
  44. 44.0 44.1 44.2 44.3 Starterbook Wolf and Blake Scenario: Muckraker
  45. Era Report: 3145, p. 54: "Silver Hawk Irregulars"
  46. Field Manual: SLDF, p. 254: "SLDF - Free Worlds League Military Command Map"
  47. First Succession War, p. 138: "First Succession War Deployment Table - FWLM"
  48. 20 Year Update, p. 57: "Free Worlds League Deployment Table"
  49. Objective Raids, p. 39: "Free Worlds League Deployment Table"
  50. Field Manual: Free Worlds League, p. 115: "Free Worlds League Deployment Table"
  51. Field Report: FWLM, p. 14: "Regimental Status"
  52. Field Report: FWLM, p. 16: "Irregular Forces Status"
  53. Field Manual: 3145, p. 171: "Clan Force Deployments - Wolf Empire"
  54. 54.0 54.1 The Fires of Hell - Storming the Objective
  55. 55.0 55.1 55.2 The Fires of Hell - Journey
  56. 56.0 56.1 The Fires of Hell - Recon
  57. House Marik (The Free Worlds League), p. 131: "MediQuick Services"

Bibliography[edit]