Difference between revisions of "Inner Sphere"

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{{Update Needed|[[Handbook: Major Periphery States]]}}
 
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{{otheruses|the interstellar region|other uses|Inner Sphere (disambiguation)}}
:''This article is about the interstellar region. For other uses, see [[Inner Sphere (disambiguation)]].''
 
  
 
The '''Inner Sphere''' is a region of interstellar space surrounding Earth to a radius of roughly 450 - 550 light-years, generally demarcated by the outer borders of the "[[Great Houses]]."  Within this region of about 2 million stars, there are approximately 2000 inhabited planets. Beyond the Inner Sphere is the [[Periphery]].
 
The '''Inner Sphere''' is a region of interstellar space surrounding Earth to a radius of roughly 450 - 550 light-years, generally demarcated by the outer borders of the "[[Great Houses]]."  Within this region of about 2 million stars, there are approximately 2000 inhabited planets. Beyond the Inner Sphere is the [[Periphery]].
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==History==
 
==History==
 
[[File:MilkyWay.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Position and size of the Inner Sphere in the Galaxy (red dot)]]
 
[[File:MilkyWay.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Position and size of the Inner Sphere in the Galaxy (red dot)]]
{{main|Inner Sphere (history)}}
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{{main|History of the Inner Sphere}}
Colonization of the Inner Sphere began in 2108 when the [[Terran Alliance]] launched the first manned faster-than-light mission aboard the ''[[TAS Pathfinder]]''. Between 2108 and 2235, the Terran Alliance colonized and ruled the first centralized interstellar government in human history, controlling more than 600 colonies within 120 light years of [[Terra]]. However, corruption and logistics made it impossible to adequately govern such a large body.  Private concerns "illegally" funded exploration and colonization of Inner Sphere worlds as well as worlds located in the [[Periphery]] and the [[Deep Periphery]]. Despite the best efforts of the Terran Alliance to end "blockade running", by the end of the [[Outer Reaches Rebellion]], the Terran Alliance was declining.
+
Colonization of the Inner Sphere began in [[2108]] when the [[Terran Alliance]] launched the first manned faster-than-light mission aboard the ''[[TAS Pathfinder]]''. Between 2108 and [[2235]], the Terran Alliance colonized and ruled the first centralized interstellar government in human history, controlling more than 600 colonies within 120 light years of [[Terra]]. However, corruption and logistics made it impossible to adequately govern such a large body.  Private concerns "illegally" funded exploration and colonization of Inner Sphere worlds as well as worlds located in the [[Periphery]] and the [[Deep Periphery]]. Despite the best efforts of the Terran Alliance to end "blockade running", by the end of the [[Outer Reaches Rebellion]] in [[2236]], the Terran Alliance was declining.
  
From c. A.D. 2300 to 2787, the Inner Sphere was divided into five "pie wedges" around a central, roughly circular core:<br>
+
From c. A.D. 2300 to 2787, the Inner Sphere was divided into five "pie wedges" around a central, roughly circular core centered on Terra:<br>
 
<br>
 
<br>
 +
* The [[Terran Hegemony]], established [[2315]]
 +
** Rulers: [[House Cameron]]
 
* The [[Free Worlds League]], established [[2271]]
 
* The [[Free Worlds League]], established [[2271]]
 
** Rulers: [[House Marik]]
 
** Rulers: [[House Marik]]
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* The [[Capellan Confederation]], established [[2367]]
 
* The [[Capellan Confederation]], established [[2367]]
 
**Rulers: [[House Liao]]
 
**Rulers: [[House Liao]]
* The central [[Terran Hegemony]], established [[2315]]
 
** Rulers: [[House Cameron]]
 
 
<br>
 
<br>
Shortly after the formation of the Great Houses, the [[Age of War]] began. The end of the Age of War accompanied the formation of the [[Star League]], a multinational administrative and peacekeeping treaty, which lasted for ~250 years. During the Star League era, mankind achieved technological marvels, and the relative stability of the age is still viewed as a utopian period by the people of the Inner Sphere - though the stability of the Star League may be more myth than legend. With the collapse of the Star League in [[2781]] and exodus of the [[Star League Defense Force]] from the Inner Sphere, the Great Houses consumed the moribund Hegemony and turned on each other. Only [[Terra]] remained independent under the aegis of neutral interstellar communications agency, [[ComStar]].
+
Shortly after the formation of the Great Houses, the [[Age of War]] began. The end of the Age of War accompanied the formation of the [[Star League]], a multinational administrative and peacekeeping treaty, which lasted for ~250 years. During the Star League era, mankind achieved technological marvels, and the relative stability of the age is still viewed as a utopian period by the people of the Inner Sphere, though this view is colored by nostalgic myth. With the collapse of the Star League in [[2781]] and exodus of the [[Star League Defense Force]] from the Inner Sphere, the Great Houses consumed the moribund Hegemony and turned on each other. Only [[Terra]] remained independent under the aegis of neutral interstellar communications agency, [[ComStar]].
  
During the next 250 years, civilization was hammered from its 28th Century peak down to 21st Century technology on many worlds and to more primitive states on others - and hundreds of worlds had their populations exterminated altogether. The cause for this warfare was a matter of feudal succession to the throne of the fallen Star League, hence the four wars of this period were called [[Succession Wars (History)|Succession Wars]], while the five Great Houses were said to rule [[Successor States]].
+
During the next 250 years, civilization was hammered from its twenty-eighth century peak down to twenty-first-century technology on many worlds and to more primitive states on others - and hundreds of worlds had their populations exterminated altogether. The cause for this warfare was a matter of feudal succession to the throne of the fallen Star League, hence the four wars of this period were called [[Succession Wars (History)|Succession Wars]], while the five Great Houses were said to rule [[Successor States]].
  
 
* The [[First Succession War]], [[2786]]-[[2821]]
 
* The [[First Succession War]], [[2786]]-[[2821]]
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Despite hundreds of billions of deaths, the first three Succession Wars resulted in little change to the map after the First Succession War divided the [[Terran Hegemony]] between the five [[Successor States]].  
 
Despite hundreds of billions of deaths, the first three Succession Wars resulted in little change to the map after the First Succession War divided the [[Terran Hegemony]] between the five [[Successor States]].  
  
The brief Fourth Succession War brought a dramatic change when the [[Lyran Commonwealth]] and [[Federated Suns]], on opposite sides of the Sphere, united at the expense of the other [[Successor States]]' territories. A number of minor nations appeared in the Inner Sphere during or shortly after the [[Fourth Succession War]], at the expense of the [[Draconis Combine]], the [[Free Worlds League]] and the [[Capellan Confederation]].
+
The brief Fourth Succession War brought a dramatic change when the [[Lyran Commonwealth]] and [[Federated Suns]], on opposite sides of the Sphere, united and conquered much of the other [[Successor States]]' territories. A number of minor nations appeared in the Inner Sphere during or shortly after the [[Fourth Succession War]], at the expense of the [[Draconis Combine]], the [[Free Worlds League]] and the [[Capellan Confederation]]:
  
 +
==Minor Nations==
 
* The [[Tikonov Free Republic]], [[3028]]-[[3031]]
 
* The [[Tikonov Free Republic]], [[3028]]-[[3031]]
 
* The [[St. Ives Compact]], [[3029]]-[[3063]]
 
* The [[St. Ives Compact]], [[3029]]-[[3063]]
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* The [[Duchy of Andurien]], [[3030]]-[[3040]]
 
* The [[Duchy of Andurien]], [[3030]]-[[3040]]
  
The political balance of the Inner Sphere changed fundamentally when lost scions of the Star League Defense Force, the [[Clans]], returned to conquer the Inner Sphere and restore the "[[Star League]]". The Clan Invasion ([[3049]]-[[3052]]) nearly destroyed the [[Free Rasalhague Republic]], while the Lyran half of the [[Federated Commonwealth]] and the [[Draconis Combine]] lost many systems. Though the Clan invasion was halted after the [[Battle of Tukayyid]], the [[Invading Clans]] had gained a foothold within the Inner Sphere. As denizens of the Inner Sphere, Clan politics and practices tended to change, reflecting both an increase in affluence (the Clan homeworlds are considered marginally hospitable compared with worlds of the Inner Sphere) and the need to interact with their new neighbors.
+
The political balance of the Inner Sphere changed fundamentally when the vanished scions of the Star League Defense Force, the [[Clans]], returned to conquer the Inner Sphere and restore the "[[Star League]]". The Clan Invasion ([[3049]]-[[3052]]) nearly destroyed the [[Free Rasalhague Republic]], while the Lyran half of the [[Federated Commonwealth]] and the [[Draconis Combine]] lost many systems. Though the Clan invasion was halted after the [[Battle of Tukayyid (3052)|Battle of Tukayyid]], the [[Invading Clans]] were in the Inner Sphere to stay. As denizens of the Inner Sphere, Clan politics and practices tended to change, reflecting both an increase in affluence (the [[Clan Homeworlds]] are considered marginally hospitable compared with worlds of the Inner Sphere) and the need to interact with their new neighbors.
  
 
==Beyond the Inner Sphere==
 
==Beyond the Inner Sphere==
  
The [[Periphery]] surrounding the Inner Sphere is home to a few nations of moderate power and many independent worlds cut off from civilization with the collapse of the Star League. The Inner Sphere perceives the Periphery much like modern developed nations perceive the Third World, though some of the major Periphery nations compare well with the weaker Inner Sphere states.
+
The [[Periphery]] surrounding the Inner Sphere is home to a few nations of moderate power, bandit kingdoms, and many independent worlds cut off from civilization with the collapse of the Star League. The Inner Sphere perceives the Periphery much like modern developed nations perceive the Third World, though some of the major Periphery nations compare well with the weaker Inner Sphere states.
  
Beyond the Periphery is unexplored space (sometimes called the [[Deep Periphery]]). The [[Clans]] exist in a small islet of settled worlds in the Deep Periphery.
+
Beyond the Periphery lies the rest of the universe, known as the [[Deep Periphery]]. In addition to the distant Clan Homeworlds, a number of independent worlds and small civilizations have been founded, though contact with mainstream humanity is usually intermittent at best.
  
 
==Inner Sphere Map Galleries==
 
==Inner Sphere Map Galleries==
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===Sarna Cartography===
 
===Sarna Cartography===
 +
:''See Also'':
 +
:* [[BattleTechWiki:Map Legend|Sarna Map Legend]]
 +
:* [[BattleTechWiki:System coordinates| Essays: "How system coordinates are determined"]]
 
====Inner Sphere====
 
====Inner Sphere====
 
'''Select the thumbnail image and then the resulting file icon.'''  
 
'''Select the thumbnail image and then the resulting file icon.'''  
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'''To zoom in & out, hold the CTRL key while scrolling on your mouse.'''
 
<gallery>
 
<gallery>
  
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2783 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2783 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2783<br>Annexations of the Terran Hegemony
 
2783 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2783 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2783<br>Annexations of the Terran Hegemony
 
2786 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2786 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2786<br>Start of the 1st Succession War
 
2786 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2786 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2786<br>Start of the 1st Succession War
2821 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2821 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2821<br>Start of OPERATION Klondike
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2821 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2821 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2821<br>Start of Operation KLONDIKE
 
2822 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2822 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2822<br>End of the 1st Succession War
 
2822 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2822 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2822<br>End of the 1st Succession War
 
2830 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2830 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2830<br>Start of the 2nd Succession War
 
2830 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2830 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2830<br>Start of the 2nd Succession War
 
2864 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2864 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2864<br>End of the 2nd Succession War
 
2864 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2864 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 2864<br>End of the 2nd Succession War
3025 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3025 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3025
+
3025 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3025 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3025<br>End of the 3rd Succession War
3030 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3030 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3030
+
3030 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3030 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3030<br>End of the 4th Succession War
3040 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3040 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3040
+
3040 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3040 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3040<br>End of the War of 3039
3049 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3049 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3049
+
3049 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3049 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3049<br>Start of Operation REVIVAL
3052 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3052 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3052
+
3052 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3052 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3052<br>End of Operation REVIVAL
3057 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3057 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3057
+
3057 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3057 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3057<br>Start of Operation GUERRERO
3058 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3058 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3058
+
3058 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3058 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3058<br>End of Operation GUERRERO
3059 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3059 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3059
+
3059 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3059 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3059<br>End of Operation BULLDOG
3063 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3063 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3063
+
3063 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3063 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3063<br>Start of the FedCom Civil War
3067 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3067 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3067
+
3067 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3067 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3067<br>End of the FedCom Civil War
3068 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3068 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3068
+
3068 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3068 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3068<br>Start of the Jihad
3075 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3075 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3075
+
3075 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3075 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3075<br>Middle of the Jihad
3081 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3081 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3081
+
3081 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3081 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3081<br>End of the Jihad
3085 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3085 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3085
+
3085 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3085 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3085<br>End of the Wars of Reaving
3095 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3095 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3095
+
3095 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3095 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3095<br>Republic of the Sphere
3130 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3130 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3130
+
3130 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3130 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3130<br>Devlin Stone's Retirement
 
+
3135 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3135 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3135<br>Fortress Republic
3145 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3145 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3145<br>
+
3145 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3145 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3145<br>Return of Devlin Stone
3151 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3151 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3151<br>
+
3151 Inner Sphere (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3151 Inner Sphere (Sarna).svg|Inner Sphere 3151<br>ilClan Trial
  
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
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====Known Universe====
 
====Known Universe====
 
'''Select the thumbnail image and then the resulting file icon.'''
 
'''Select the thumbnail image and then the resulting file icon.'''
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'''To zoom in & out, hold the CTRL key while scrolling on your mouse.'''
 
<gallery>
 
<gallery>
 
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2571 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2571 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2571<br>Star League Founding
3145 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3145 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3145
+
2596 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2596 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2596<br>End of the Reunification War
3151 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3151 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3151
+
2750 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2750 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2750<br>Beginning of the Fall of the Star League
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2765 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2765 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2765<br>Eve of the Amaris Coup
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2767 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2767 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2767<br>Amaris Empire
 +
2783 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2783 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2783<br>Annexations of the Terran Hegemony
 +
2786 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2786 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2786<br>Start of the 1st Succession War
 +
2821 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2821 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2821<br>Start of Operation KLONDIKE
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2822 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2822 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2822<br>End of the 1st Succession War
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2830 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2830 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2830<br>Start of the 2nd Succession War
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2864 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:2864 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 2864<br>End of the 2nd Succession War
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3025 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3025 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3025<br>End of the 3rd Succession War
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3030 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3030 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3030<br>End of the 4th Succession War
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3040 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3040 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3040<br>End of the War of 3039
 +
3049 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3049 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3049<br>Start of Operation REVIVAL
 +
3052 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3052 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3052<br>End of Operation REVIVAL
 +
3057 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3057 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3057<br>Start of Operation GUERRERO
 +
3058 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3058 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3058<br>End of Operation GUERRERO
 +
3059 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3059 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3059<br>End of Operation BULLDOG
 +
3063 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3063 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3063<br>Start of the FedCom Civil War
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3067 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3067 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3067<br>End of the FedCom Civil War
 +
3068 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3068 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3068<br>Start of the Jihad
 +
3075 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3075 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3075<br>Middle of the Jihad
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3081 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3081 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3081<br>End of the Jihad
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3085 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3085 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3085<br>End of the Wars of Reaving
 +
3095 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3095 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3095<br>Republic of the Sphere
 +
3130 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3130 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3130<br>Devlin Stone's Retirement
 +
3135 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3135 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3135<br>Fortress Republic
 +
3145 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3145 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3145<br>Return of Devlin Stone
 +
3151 Known Universe (Sarna) thumbnail.jpg|link=File:3151 Known Universe (Sarna).svg|Known Universe 3151<br>ilClan Trial
  
 
</gallery>
 
</gallery>
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==References==
 
==References==
 
<references />
 
<references />
 +
 
==Bibliography==
 
==Bibliography==
 
*''[[The Periphery (sourcebook)]]''
 
*''[[The Periphery (sourcebook)]]''
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{{wikipedia|82298776}}
 
{{wikipedia|82298776}}
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[[Category:Universe Regions]]
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[[Category:Articles with no sources]]

Latest revision as of 03:24, 31 January 2024

This article is about the interstellar region. For other uses, see Inner Sphere (disambiguation).


The Inner Sphere is a region of interstellar space surrounding Earth to a radius of roughly 450 - 550 light-years, generally demarcated by the outer borders of the "Great Houses." Within this region of about 2 million stars, there are approximately 2000 inhabited planets. Beyond the Inner Sphere is the Periphery.

History[edit]

Position and size of the Inner Sphere in the Galaxy (red dot)

Colonization of the Inner Sphere began in 2108 when the Terran Alliance launched the first manned faster-than-light mission aboard the TAS Pathfinder. Between 2108 and 2235, the Terran Alliance colonized and ruled the first centralized interstellar government in human history, controlling more than 600 colonies within 120 light years of Terra. However, corruption and logistics made it impossible to adequately govern such a large body. Private concerns "illegally" funded exploration and colonization of Inner Sphere worlds as well as worlds located in the Periphery and the Deep Periphery. Despite the best efforts of the Terran Alliance to end "blockade running", by the end of the Outer Reaches Rebellion in 2236, the Terran Alliance was declining.

From c. A.D. 2300 to 2787, the Inner Sphere was divided into five "pie wedges" around a central, roughly circular core centered on Terra:


Shortly after the formation of the Great Houses, the Age of War began. The end of the Age of War accompanied the formation of the Star League, a multinational administrative and peacekeeping treaty, which lasted for ~250 years. During the Star League era, mankind achieved technological marvels, and the relative stability of the age is still viewed as a utopian period by the people of the Inner Sphere, though this view is colored by nostalgic myth. With the collapse of the Star League in 2781 and exodus of the Star League Defense Force from the Inner Sphere, the Great Houses consumed the moribund Hegemony and turned on each other. Only Terra remained independent under the aegis of neutral interstellar communications agency, ComStar.

During the next 250 years, civilization was hammered from its twenty-eighth century peak down to twenty-first-century technology on many worlds and to more primitive states on others - and hundreds of worlds had their populations exterminated altogether. The cause for this warfare was a matter of feudal succession to the throne of the fallen Star League, hence the four wars of this period were called Succession Wars, while the five Great Houses were said to rule Successor States.

Despite hundreds of billions of deaths, the first three Succession Wars resulted in little change to the map after the First Succession War divided the Terran Hegemony between the five Successor States.

The brief Fourth Succession War brought a dramatic change when the Lyran Commonwealth and Federated Suns, on opposite sides of the Sphere, united and conquered much of the other Successor States' territories. A number of minor nations appeared in the Inner Sphere during or shortly after the Fourth Succession War, at the expense of the Draconis Combine, the Free Worlds League and the Capellan Confederation:

Minor Nations[edit]

The political balance of the Inner Sphere changed fundamentally when the vanished scions of the Star League Defense Force, the Clans, returned to conquer the Inner Sphere and restore the "Star League". The Clan Invasion (3049-3052) nearly destroyed the Free Rasalhague Republic, while the Lyran half of the Federated Commonwealth and the Draconis Combine lost many systems. Though the Clan invasion was halted after the Battle of Tukayyid, the Invading Clans were in the Inner Sphere to stay. As denizens of the Inner Sphere, Clan politics and practices tended to change, reflecting both an increase in affluence (the Clan Homeworlds are considered marginally hospitable compared with worlds of the Inner Sphere) and the need to interact with their new neighbors.

Beyond the Inner Sphere[edit]

The Periphery surrounding the Inner Sphere is home to a few nations of moderate power, bandit kingdoms, and many independent worlds cut off from civilization with the collapse of the Star League. The Inner Sphere perceives the Periphery much like modern developed nations perceive the Third World, though some of the major Periphery nations compare well with the weaker Inner Sphere states.

Beyond the Periphery lies the rest of the universe, known as the Deep Periphery. In addition to the distant Clan Homeworlds, a number of independent worlds and small civilizations have been founded, though contact with mainstream humanity is usually intermittent at best.

Inner Sphere Map Galleries[edit]

Outline[edit]

Sarna Cartography[edit]

See Also:

Inner Sphere[edit]

Select the thumbnail image and then the resulting file icon. To zoom in & out, hold the CTRL key while scrolling on your mouse.

Known Universe[edit]

Select the thumbnail image and then the resulting file icon. To zoom in & out, hold the CTRL key while scrolling on your mouse.

References[edit]


Bibliography[edit]



The text in this article is based on this revision of the Wikipedia article "Inner Sphere" used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. See the BattleTechWiki's copyright notice.