Word of Blake - The Schism

The Schism

The offshoot of ComStar known as the Word of Blake was founded by Demona Aziz, then Precentor of Atreus, after the assassination of Primus Myndo Waterly and the Battle of Tukayyid that halted the Clan invasion. Waterly was assassinated by Anastasius Focht, ComStar's Praetor Martial and hero of the Battle of Tukayyid, when he learned of her plot to bring all of the Inner Sphere under the rule of ComStar. The Schism was first sparked when Primus Sharilar Mori, supported by Anastasius Focht, sought to reform ComStar by doing away with its mystical and religious elements. This created a split between the newly secular ComStar and the more radical Word Of Blake.

The Word of Blake at first received support and refuge from the Free Worlds League, who employed them to control their hyperpulse communications network. However, it eventually captured Terra from ComStar in 3058. Ultimately, after the FedCom Civil War that ended in 3067, the Word of Blake launched a jihad against the rest of the Inner Sphere.

The opening of the Jihad included an attack by allegedly rogue mercenary units on the Wolf's Dragoons homeworld of Outreach as well as assaults on Tharkad, New Avalon, Luthien and several other important worlds. The goal of the Word of Blake Jihad was an extension of the original plans of ComStar's founder Jerome Blake, called Operation Silver Shield, to capture some of the Terran Hegemony worlds and hold them under ComStar's control.

However, resistance began to grow when Professor David Lear and the Republic of the Sphere's future founder, Devlin Stone, escaped from a Word of Blake reeducation camp and organized a local resistance movement that destroyed Word of Blake forces on the world of Kittery. Soon, the resistance developed into a widespread organization that was joined by ComStar, the Successor States, the Clans, and the mercenary unit Wolf's Dragoons, and, thence united, succeeding in pushing the Word of Blake back until their defeat on Terra in 3081. After their defeat, the Word of Blake survivors were folded into Comstar.