The Periphery is a big book of names and dates, a history lesson focused largely on four of the main Periphery states, their founding, and, in particular, Stefan Amaris' treachery—which is worth the read. It delves into the backstory with far more depth than the canned intro in MW1e, unfolding like a book with chapters written from different characters' perspectives, much like Game of Thrones. I ploughed the Taurian, Rim Worlds, and Outworlds Alliance sections but skipped the Canopus material - I hear they have cat-girls which is enough for me to steer clear. I found some of the cultural flip-flopping jarring - the pacifist Outworlds rising up with some Vietcong tactics against the Star League. The Rim Worlds being IRA ultranationalists then rolling over to Ameris and ultimately ending with all national pride extinguished with their worlds dissolving to piracy for no real reason. The Taurian stuff went on a little too long - which makes me think they were the authors favourite faction. Can you Mary Sue a faction? My eyes glazed over when it started detailing the various Star League armies, their composition, where they were based—on and on it goes. The peace-time summaries in the timelines also became a blur of endless names.
The writing itself is fine, probably one of the more readable histories, but make no mistake—this is the biggest lore dump I’ve tackled in a while. There are no rules, but there’s still some actionable material for my game. The bandit kingdoms and pirates in the zone I’ve picked get about three pages, including important details on how many regiments and battalions they have at their disposal. Red Jack Ryan gets some particularly brutal coverage, with a bit of torture-porn fiction making him out to be a nasty piece of work. The Valkyrate, meanwhile, use an ancient Nordic social structure—Karls, Jarls, and Thralls—but with only about a thousand people on their ice world, they’re hardly a major factor. Still, I like them and might put their raiders to use in the game.
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