Editing Conal Ward

{{Update Needed|[[Era Report: 3052]]|[[Bred for War]]}}
{{InfoBoxCharacter
| image               = Conal Ward OTPRedCorsair.jpg
| caption             = Conal Ward, ca. 3055
| name                = Conal Ward
| birthdate           = [[2993]]<ref>''Operational Turning Points: The Red Corsair'', p. 10: Conal Ward profile birthdate listed</ref>
| died                = 26 October [[3055]]<ref name=NSc42>''Natural Selection'', ch. 42</ref>
| othernames          = 
| affiliation         = [[Clan Wolf]]
| rank                = 
| title               = 
| position            = [[Loremaster of Clan Wolf|Loremaster]]
| profession          = [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarrior]]
| parents             = 
| siblings            = 
| spouse              = 
| children            = 
}}
'''Conal Ward''' was a [[Trueborn]] [[MechWarrior (pilot)|MechWarrior]], Officer, and briefly [[Loremaster]] of [[Clan Wolf]].

[[File:Conal Ward 3052.jpg|right|thumb|''Conal Ward'' at age 57 in 3050]]
==Character Description==
During Operation Revival and shortly after, he was described as a tall, thin man, with piercing eyes and black hair. He was a politically savvy Clansman, as well as a capable warrior and leader. He was devoted to the Crusader political cause.<ref>''Wolf Clan Sourcebook'', p. 98: Galaxy Commander Conal Ward - Character brief description as of 3052</ref><ref>''Operational Turning Points: The Red Corsair'', p. 10: Conal Ward - Updated brief profile of Conal Ward</ref>

==History==
===Early History===
Conal rose through the ranks of Clan Wolf to become the commander of [[Delta Galaxy (Clan Wolf)|Delta Galaxy]], also known as the "Red Wolves".  In [[3038]], he was the subject of a competency trial where he developed a personal grudge against a fellow officer, [[Ulric Kerensky]].<ref>''Wolf Clan Sourcebook'', p. 98: Galaxy Commander Conal Ward - Conal's early rivalry noted 14 years (in-game) from publication of Clan Wolf report in 3052</ref>

When Conal became [[Galaxy Commander]] of Delta Galaxy, he was known to enforce the unit's tradition of the ritual known as "[[Bloodstart]]" for new warriors.  Each warrior was made to bury the corpse of their first kill after its blood is ceremonially painted across the brow of the warrior.  They then formally visit and make restitution to the victim's family as a way of pressing home the grim reality of their career.<ref>''Wolf Clan Sourcebook'', p. 97: Delta Galaxy, Galaxy Commander still listed as Conal Ward</ref>

===Clan Invasion===
During the [[Operation Revival|Clan Invasion]], he was at the helm of his Red Wolves Galaxy. He was also a powerful political nemesis to [[Khan]] Ulric Kerensky. He allied himself with like-minded Warriors, who shared his [[Crusader Clans|Crusader]] beliefs, such as [[Vladimir Ward|Vladimir Wolf]].

By February [[3051]], Conal had arranged himself to be a candidate to replace Khan Ulric in anticipation of Ulric's upcoming elevation to [[ilKhan]].  This would have allowed Conal's Crusader views to change the political alignment of the Wolves.  In the Wolf Clan Council, he engineered for a series of other Bloodnamed Wolves to nominate him as Wolf Khan, only to surprise his opponents and allies alike by making a great show of declining the office.  The resulting opinion of the Council was to offer him a "consolation prize" in the form of elevation to Clan Wolf's Loremaster.  The Crusader-Warden battle would then be carried to the Clans Grand Council, where the Crusaders plotted to elevate Ulric to ilKhan and replace him by tradition with the Clan Loremaster.  In this way, Conal and the Crusaders planned to gain greater support in the Grand Council and thereby force Kerensky to go along with Crusader priorities.  However, Kerensky cleverly outmaneuvered Conal, citing Ward's own speech in the Wolf Clan Council declining the office of Khan, and appointed [[Natasha Kerensky]] to Khan instead.<ref>''Wolf Clan Sourcebook'', p. 42: ilKhan Ulric Kerensky - Galaxy Commander Conal Ward's gambit to become Khan leading to him becoming Loremaster</ref>

In the aftermath of the [[Battle of Tukayyid (3052)|Battle of Tukayyid]] in May [[3052]], Loremaster Conal illegally influenced a Bloodname contest and was caught, eventually being forced by Khan Natasha Kerensky resign his position as Loremaster and his command of the Delta Galaxy. As a final humiliation, he was then forced to announce his intention to go hunting bandits.<ref>''Lost Destiny'': Conal Ward announces his resignation to Wolf Council and his retirement to hunting bandits</ref><ref>''Operational Turning Points: The Red Corsair'', p. 10: Conal Ward - Note of the year he became Loremaster briefly for the Wolves</ref>

===Red Corsair Incident===
After his resignation, he became the [[Star Colonel]] of a ''[[solahma]]'' warrior unit, the [[31st Wolf Solahma (Clan Wolf)|31st Wolf ''Solahma'']] [[Cluster]]. He used his remaining political connections to staff the unit with troops loyal to him. He was also able to retain his [[OmniMech]], which he would have been normally forced to give up.

In [[3055]], Conal became involved with elements of [[Clan Jade Falcon]] to carry out a clandestine plot to destroy the Truce of Tukayyid and thereby reignite the Clan Invasion.  The Falcons secretly sponsored a force masquerading as a pirate band known as the [[Corsairs]], led by the enigmatic [[Red Corsair]].  IlKhan Kerensky ordered Conal's unit to intercept and destroy the Corsairs to prevent [[Treaty of Tukayyid]] from being compromised.  With permission, Conal and his Cluster pursued the Corsairs into Federated Commonwealth space.

===In Pursuit of the Corsairs===
Conal's force first arrived in the [[Zhongshan]] system, where they caught the Corsairs departing. Conal formally challenged the Corsairs in Clan fashion, but the pirates fled.  In June, Conal's force caught up to the Corsairs on [[Deia]], where the local militia was involved in a pitched battle with the Corsairs.  Allowing the militia and its mercenary support, Zimmer's Zouaves, to think of Conal's force as allies, Conal dropped his force directly onto the Deia defenders' position claiming they were occupying his rightful landing zone in a combat situation, destroying them in the confusion.  Seemingly unwittingly, during the ensuing battle between the militia and Conal's ''solahma'', the Corsairs were able to escape.

Ward's actions on Deia caused a political uproar with the Federated Commonwealth's ruling Archon-Prince [[Victor Steiner-Davion]], which prompted him to dispatch the [[Kell Hounds]] to the area with orders to destroy Conal's unit should they attack more "allied" units.  After a running series of "cat and mouse" skirmishes and ambushes, the Wolf ''solahma'' and their apparent mercenary allies (now joined by a force led by Khan Phelan Ward) finally seem to corner the Corsairs on the [[Occupation Zone|Wolf Clan Occupation]] world of [[Elissa]].  Here Ward and his true ally, the Red Corsair, sprang their trap: to delay the Kell Hounds and Khan Phelan's forces long enough to detonate a nuclear weapon.

In the aftermath of the battle, Conal was captured and shot by Khan Ward, who passed the killing off as a Circle of Equals, while the Red Corsair was killed before she could trigger the device.<ref>''Operational Turning Points: The Red Corsair'', pp. 8, 10, & 28: The Path of the Corsair, Conal Ward, Touchpoint: Elissa - Character Red Corsair actions that led to his demise</ref>

==Quotes==
{{quote|''What transpires here will bind us till we all shall fall. You are the best the House of Ward has to offer.''|Loremaster Conal Ward, to Phelan and Vlad at their [[Trial of Bloodright]], 3052}}

{{quote|''A man of vision, [[Ulric Kerensky|Ulric]] looks to the future. He dreams of a world where the [[Clan Wolf|Wolves]] occupy their rightful place within the history of both the [[Clans]] and mankind''.|Loremaster Conal Ward, Clan Wolf, Strana Mechty, 25 April [[3051]]}}

==Notes==
Conal Ward was noted as a ''[[Man O' War]]'' [[OmniMech]] pilot, which he continued to use through most of his career until his death.  He was known to have his own [[Man O' War#Custom_Configurations|custom configuration]] for his machine at times, but often used the standard loadout as well.<ref>''Natural Selection'': Conal Ward duel with Phelan Ward using standard configuration of the Man O' War</ref><ref>''Operational Turning Points: The Red Corsair'', p. 30: Man O' War Conal - Record Sheet named as personal configuration</ref>  However, he did not use this configuration in his final duel with Khan Phelan Ward.

==References==
<references/>

==Bibliography==
* ''[[Blood Legacy]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Era Report: 3052]]''
* ''[[Lethal Heritage]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Lost Destiny]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Natural Selection]]'' (novel)
* ''[[Operational Turning Points: The Red Corsair]]''
* ''[[Wolf Clan Sourcebook]]''


[[Category:Clan Wolf Characters|Ward, Conal]]
[[Category:Loremasters|Ward, Conal]]
[[Category:Notable Gargoyle (Man O' War) Pilots|Ward, Conal]]