ILLYRIAN PALATINATE

Origins and History

The Illyrian Palatinate is a collection of four worlds lying between the Circinus Federation and the Lothian League. Ruled by an oligarchy of rich trading families, the Palatinate survives through modest trade with the Free Worlds League, primarily in iron ore and processed steel. The Scandinavian descendants of the original 24th-century colonists maintain a precarious hold on their star systems against continued depredations by the Circinus Federation. At present, their military consists of a minuscule trading fleet and several companies of BattleMechs, mostly mercenaries and officers who have fled the Inner Sphere for one reason or another. Supplementing the Palatinate's revenues are large sums of cash earned from staging annual MechWarrior games, in which contestants battle to the death for salvaged BattleMechs and spare parts.