Question for people who have read the novels

[Dolphin]

I have read a all of the novels released to date, but I find some things a little shady. I will mention some spoilers for those who do not want to continue.

My issue is when Starcraft Ghost: Nova takes place. The prologue mentions "four years after the brood war". So I know that the Terra family is a high profile confederate family and the bulk of the story, is nova's time in tarsonis. Also the wrangler in search of nova, Malcolm Kelerchian, is looking for her. While all this takes place Malcolm is doing his search under the order of the Confederacy. The beginning of the story tells us that the father of nova, who owns some factories, are being attacked by the Sons of Korhal. He sends his daughter to another planet to keep her safe, but those who read the book know what happens from here. Near the end of the book, nova becomes a ghost in training under mengsk (dominion), and the detective/wrangler talks with mengsk himself.

My question is does the whole nova timeline come after, before, or during the time when Kerrigan was captured at the end of Liberty's crusade. When the factories owned by Nova's dad were under attack, did Mengsk already declare the Terran dominion well before the attacks that are mentioned in the beginning of the nova story or are the events one right after the other?

We are told that the confederacy fell because of the beacon that led the zerg to destroy Tarsonis. Yet the above events takes place in tarsonis. Is it possible that the time mengsk left kerrigan is around the same time that mengsk meets nova and the wrangler, and they are talking in orbit?

Thanks for your help and sorry for the long read.

[DarkMirror]

Since that would make no sense as you put it, it would have to take place 4 years BEFORE the brood wars.

[Dolphin]

Hm... the bulk of the story does go back in time. But when does all this actually take place? A reference to kerrigan helps me a lot. :D

I'm actually led to believe that this takes place well before kerrigan's capture by the zerg.

[mranderson]

*Spoilers ahead!



The prologue is the beginning of Nova's initiation mission, which would be after she is in the Ghost program, and is in her last rite of training. That author uses a shift in point of view at the beginning, and end. The "nova timeline" that is the base of the book covers before Mengsk announces the Dominion, but he struck those factories far before Tarsonis also. And when Mengsk meets the wrangler it is "a few weeks" after the events on Tarsonis.

Again, I hope this helps.

[Dolphin]

Thanks mranderson.

Yah I understand that the prologue is pointing the reader to the present time after nova's tranining. I think if I put my questions in this format it would help me much more:

1. The story of nova as a little girl and up until the time she is actually recruited into the ghost program (which by this time is under the dominion), tarsonis is still under confederate rule and hence kerrigan is still human and working under mengsk.

2. The ending part where the wrangler speaks to mengsk, which you mention, "a few weeks after the events on tarsonis" is when by this time, tarsonis has fallen and kerrigan is in the process of becoming zerg, and nova is undergoing training. And since tarsonis is destroyed, are they speaking on a ship that is in space, which is where nova is also being trained - on a spaceship?

Can you verify if I have these statements correct?

So the nova novel coincides with liberty's crusade in a sense...

Also would you happen to know if the Dark Templar saga is after the nova novel as far as the sc timeline goes?

Thanks so much!

[mranderson]

Both of your statements are correct, and I would have to look at the novels to make absolutely you're 100% right, but it looks good to me. And yes, it conincides in a sense, but I never particullarly liked the book Nova.

And yes, the dark templar is after starcraft vanilla, but I'm almost 100% sure it's before brood wars.

[Dolphin]

You mean nova right? haha... i get those typos sometimes.

But yah I thought it about a little more, and it's obvious now that dark templar is after nova because in dark templar, mengsk is already the leading figure throughout the story, since his son is leading the expedition.

Hm... I havent played the sc games, and I don't know what takes place in brood war or the original. Have to go read on it. Is brood war in the game equivalent to the queen of blades novel?

Thanks for your reply. Helped a lot!

[mranderson]

Play the campaigns, at night, in the dark :) The queen of blades novel takes place right after the vanilla Terran campgain, and into the zerg campaign through the Protoss campaign. But one thing you must remember is that the Novelists sometimes take liberties with the campaign...

[Dolphin]

Ok, now I am curious about what the hell Starcraft vanilla is...

[ForTheSwarm]

Starcraft vanilla is the original version of SC.

[Dolphin]

By original you mean the first disc (non-expansion) of the pc game right? Not the n64 game or do they have the same content?

And also when did the term "vanilla" come in? That is rather weird/interesting...

[DarkMirror]

Vanilla: Plain, bland, original.

[mranderson]

The n64 version has the expansion if you have that special n64 card or w/e

But yeah, vanilla=original. It's catchy ^^

[masterofhobbiton]

Can you verify if I have these statements correct?

So the nova novel coincides with liberty's crusade in a sense...

YES, because there's a scene in the book where Nova's dad is watching a live broadcast by Liberty that happens in the Crusade book.

[Dolphin]

I just thought of something,

In the end of the Nova Novel, where mengsk is talking to the wrangler and watching nova train, where are they located? Did they happen to be in a ship or on another planet?

P.S. Did mengsk announce and new planet as their homeland after the fall of tarsonis?

[mranderson]

"Weeks later Mal found himself on Ursa..." The planet Ursa.

And vanilla shows the coronation of Mengsk on Korhal. You should really play the campgains :)

[NoobOfLore]

As in without BroodWar. There's regular StarCraft and StarCraft BroodWar. You need to install SC Vanilla(not BroodWar) before you can play SC BroodWar.
Clear things up any?