Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Magyar Sector in the Rim War: Background

Although not nearly as bloody as the Diaspora or Old Expanses campaigns, and certainly not as celebrated as the fight for the Solomani Rim, Magyar sector proved to be an important and dynamic theatre of the Rim War. The Magyar campaign was notable for featuring two of the most colorful and talented admirals in either the Imperial or Confederation navies: Kemper and Coglan.

Both commanders were natives of Daibei sector, and their storied naval careers had many parallels and intersections. Admiral Miiri Elixabeth Kemper, who directed the Imperial forces, was an incomparable strategist who orchestrated a brutally efficient invasion of Magyar. She was opposed by Confederation Admiral Arturo Coglan, whose cunning and resourceful defense may have prevented the complete destruction of the Solomani Confederation.

Although the two admirals probably never met prior to the Rim War, their relationship has been subject to many fanciful dramatizations that sometimes portray the two as star-crossed lovers. Although this speculation has resulted in several saccharine novels and holovids, the beloved “Kemper & Coglan” symphony is widely regarded as one of the best pieces of Neo-Terran orchestral music composed in the last century.

Early Lives

Kemper was born in 956 on Warinir/Edge (Daibei 0507) to an upper middle class family with a long tradition of service in the Imperial Navy; her own father had retired a lieutenant. From an early age she was fascinated with Terran history and particularly Solomani naval traditions. In 973 she was admitted to Imperial Naval Academy (Daibei Branch), then located on Warinir. Ferociously competitive, she received numerous commendations for her scholarship, fencing, and chess play. Her senior thesis, which won the prestigious Lisiani Prize, was on emerging differences between Imperial and Solomani military doctrine. Kemper graduated at the top of her class and received her pick of assignments with the Imperial Navy. She chose the Ftahalr Enforcement Fleet, where she rapidly rose through the ranks until she gained her first command in 985.

Coglan was born on Kimel/Narya (Daibei 2239) in 957 to a working-class family. At the time Kimel was a major Solomani Confederation port, hosting both the Daibei Fleet Headquarters and a Confederation Naval Academy. Bright and inventive, Coglan won admittance to the Academy in 975. While popular with his classmates and possessing tremendous talent, he was a poor student inclined to mischief, graduating near the bottom of his class. Like Kemper he also was a skilled fencer and chess player. In fact, his innovative chess play caught the eye of Sector Admiral Zion Taskill, who hand-picked the young ensign for his personal staff. Although he longed for his own command, Coglan shone under Admiral Taskill and quickly became one of the chief planners for the Daibei Sector Fleet.

Runup to the Rim War (988–990)

In 988 the Solomani Confederation’s Naval High Command, based on Luna, ordered Admiral Taskill to develop plans for an invasion of Imperial space in Daibei sector. The goal was to retake worlds that had originally been part of the Solomani Autonomous Region, and to capture neighboring  worlds with significant Solomani populations.

In Daibei the original border of the Autonomous Region, established in 704, had stretched spinward from the rimward edge of Conda subsector through Dudin and Mulaar and into Gaalorn subsector. Hermes, Narya, Orvon, and Cruxway subsectors were almost entirely within the Sphere.

However, numerous border worlds within the Autonomous Region did not sign the Charter of Confederation in 871. And after Empress Margaret II revoked the Region’s charter in 940 the Imperium gradually reabsorbed many of these border systems despite the protests of the Solomani. Eventually the Imperium reclaimed most of the Daibei worlds within three rimward parsecs of the border. Several worlds deeper in Confederation space considered themselves Imperial or at least independent and began formally reestablishing ties to the Imperium, especially if they had once belonged to the Imperium. Such worlds opened Imperial consul offices and recruiting stations and appointed noble representatives in anticipation of reintegration.

One of the first Daibei worlds to return to the Imperium was Durgaarurkim/Conda (Daibei 2720), a high population world with a majority Vilani population. Subsequent worlds included the entire Tukera Cluster and Corve/Dudin (Daibei 1729). The Tukera Cluster contains the homeworld and many colony worlds of the Evantha, winged sophonts native to Temeraire/Conda (Daibei 3020). Corve was the homeworld of the Bruhre, a massive, hexopedal race accustomed to a high atmospheric sulfur content. The Bruhre are complex and remarkably intolerant species, and for this reason, are usually isolated from the mainstream of other Imperial cultures. Neither the Evantha nor the Bruhre fared well under the Solomani and the Imperium felt intervention was necessary for the protection of both species.

In response to the High Command's request, Admiral Taskill turned to Coglan, his ablest planner, to develop the invasion plans for Daibei. The brilliant but pessimistic Coglan expressed reservations about the viability of an invasion: while the Confederation might be able to achieve early victories, Coglan argued that the Confederation could not withstand a sustained war with the Imperium. Despite Coglan’s protests, his plan was approved by High Command with only few comments.

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