The Duke Dilema

[The_Blade]

As I was thinking over the StarCraft campaign and "Liberty's Crusade", I encountered some sort of lore dilema.

Duke allied Mengsk and helped him destroy Tarsonis (Home of most of the Duke family). IIRC Duke was not the hier of the Duke family, but he was still a powerful member of this family. In "StarCraft Ghost" the Duke family destituted Duke from his oficial power in the confederation when the news on his alliance to Mengsk spread.

Yet, how was it possible for Duke to kill his whole family. He not only carried out the mission, but knew about the real plan before invading Tarsonis.

[Kimera757]

He's evil. He cared more about power than his whole family. Or maybe he sent them a secret message. You never know.

From the title, I was wondering if you were going to discuss if Duke was smart or not.

[Laurentian]

Doesn't seem the writers of the expanded universe care so I'm not sure? If he did slaughter his own family I guess he did it for power but I'm not waiting for Blizz to explain this. Of course all the stuff about Mengsk and Duke being from the Confederacy's Ruling Class Oligarchy was a retcon anyway so naturally this is going to cause problems.

Personally I do find it amusing that, considering all of the discussion about the Terran birthrate and all, it appears that the only characters explicitly stated (in expanded universe; going by SCwikia) to have more than one sibling are Nova and Duke who are from the wealthiest families yet Kerrigan and Raynor who were born to poor farmers have no sibilings at all. Not to mention that the Old Families don't seem to have cadet branches or that with life expectancy over 100 no one has any grandparents. Makes me wonder how much of an effect the deaths of over 10 billion people in 5 years have on the Dominion's demographics.

[Hawki]

Don't see how Duke and Mengsk coming from Old Families is a retcon, as it was never stated otherwise. Personally I never had an issue with it-Duke hardly seems like the family type. Moving on, Kerrigan was never said to come from a poor family and many characters have siblings. Still, I agree that the terran population figures are often rediculous.

[Laurentian]

Don't see how Duke and Mengsk coming from Old Families is a retcon, as it was never stated otherwise.

The Old Families' existence are a retcon since they weren't created until after the game itself. And nothing in the manual seemed to suggest that Mengsk and Duke were supposed to be from the most prominent families of the Confederacy.

Kerrigan was never said to come from a poor family

Okay I admit I assumed this since her parents were farmers from the "galactic fringe." Those types don't appear to have lots of money.

many characters have siblings.

You need to have at least three children in order to have population growth which is why I mentioned Nova and Duke being apparently the only characters with more than one sibling. Of course I could be wrong.

[Quirel]

The Old Families' existence are a retcon since they weren't created until after the game itself. And nothing in the manual seemed to suggest that Mengsk and Duke were supposed to be from the most prominent families of the Confederacy.

Honestly, is it a retcon if it simply hasn't been addressed initially? That's almost like saying that Spectres and Terrazine are retcons, because nothing was said in the original game that psionic powers could be augmented by organic gasses.

Okay I admit I assumed this since her parents were farmers from the "galactic fringe." Those types don't appear to have lots of money.

Coming from Corn County, Pacific Northwest, you'd be surprised at how rich some of these guys are. Spill a tank of pesticide? You get yelled at. Roll a combine? No problem, just don't fall too far behind on the harvest.

If there's money to be made out in the galactic fringe, then the rich types will be drawn in just as fast as the poor types.

[Laurentian]

Honestly, is it a retcon if it simply hasn't been addressed initially? That's almost like saying that Spectres and Terrazine are retcons, because nothing was said in the original game that psionic powers could be augmented by organic gasses.

The Old Families and the fact that Mengsk and Duke are among them were clearly created after the game by the writers of the expanded universe. They weren't intended by the writers of SC1. Hence retcon. There clearly wasn't any indication that Duke and Mengsk were supposed to be from the Confederacy's ruling oligarchy. Mengsk is described as being a prospector son of a Korhalian senator who became the Confederacy's greatest enemy. I would think that he is a member of the Confederacy's own ruling oligarchy is not an insignificant fact. Personally I don't think it is an outrageous retcon as everyone seems to act as if retcons are inherently bad. But it is a retcon nevertheless.

Coming from Corn County, Pacific Northwest, you'd be surprised at how rich some of these guys are. Spill a tank of pesticide? You get yelled at. Roll a combine? No problem, just don't fall too far behind on the harvest.

If there's money to be made out in the galactic fringe, then the rich types will be drawn in just as fast as the poor types.

Well Fringe worlders (I'm assuming that the "galatic fringe" and "fringe worlds" are the same. I know this could be stupid in a game with the Dark Voice and The Voice in the Darkness being two different entities) are supposed to be a poor bunch (cheap labour, dreary existences, don't benefit from the resources according to SCwikia) of backwards rednecks who are constantly in revolt against their oppressive masters that are keeping them in poverty. I'm sure logically there have to be rich Fringe world farmers but it is safe to assume they are supposed to be poor.

Anyway I think she should be from a family of poor farmers since this means she comes from a similar background to Raynor and her humble background will contrast with her status as the most powerful psionic ever and being the zerg leader. Unfortunately Blizzard doesn't seem to be all that interested in her family background so I don't think we'll get a real answer. I mean they haven't even given her mother a name. If we do get an answer I will be surprised if they reveal that her parents were wealthy fringe world farmers.

[Kimera757]

Not to mention that the Old Families don't seem to have cadet branches or that with life expectancy over 100 no one has any grandparents. Makes me wonder how much of an effect the deaths of over 10 billion people in 5 years have on the Dominion's demographics.

They did have cadet branches on other planets. This is never explicitly stated, but it's pretty clear in I, Mengsk and Heaven's Devils. (In each case, Old Families have representatives on other planets. The Mengsks even lived on Korhal, rather than on Tarsonis.)

And nothing in the manual seemed to suggest that Mengsk and Duke were supposed to be from the most prominent families of the Confederacy.

No, the manual made it clear the Mengsks were prominent before turning on the Confederacy.

Galactic Fringe isn't the same thing as fringe world. The galactic fringe includes Earth and the Koprulu Sector (neither are near the center of the galaxy, but they're 60-80 thousand light years apart). Fringe world means poor/colony world.

We know very little of Kerrigan's childhood. She might have been loaded. Her being a part of the Ghost Program from age 8 is a much longer, more significant background than whether she was a poor farmchild, wealthy farmchild, descendant of the urban proletariat or what have you. She was a slave from age 8; that's going to leave someone with issues. Why would you assume her background was similar to Raynor's? It's anything but.

[Laurentian]

Old Families have representatives on other planets

What makes you so sure these are relatives as supposed to business associates? Have the same names? Explicitly stated to be relatives? Mengsks could be living on Korhal just because an ancestor decided to settle there.

No, the manual made it clear the Mengsks were prominent before turning on the Confederacy.

The only thing it says is that Arcturus is a successful businessman and prospector. Angus is just a Korhal senator. Nothing is said about them being from the Confederacy's ruling elite.

Why would you assume her background was similar to Raynor's? It's anything but.

I was refering to her Family background in this case. Anyway Blizz can easily change everything about her background if they want to, so I see my assumptions are pretty pointless.

[Kimera757]

What makes you so sure these are relatives as supposed to business associates? Have the same names? Explicitly stated to be relatives? Mengsks could be living on Korhal just because an ancestor decided to settle there.

Yes, actual members of the family, and not just the escape planned in Nova and Ghost Academy. Family members living off Tarsonis had to fly in for the Reunion, or members of the family living on Tarsonis attended.

The only thing it says is that Arcturus is a successful businessman and prospector. Angus is just a Korhal senator. Nothing is said about them being from the Confederacy's ruling elite.

I would think a senator is an elite, but you may have a point. I must have read that somewhere else before I, Mengsk.

I was refering to her Family background in this case. Anyway Blizz can easily change everything about her background if they want to, so I see my assumptions are pretty pointless.

But we know nothing about her background beyond a sentence in Uprising and Hybrid - she was playing on a fringe world outside, lost control of her powers, ended up in the Ghost Program. That's what we know. What did Patrick Kerrigan do for a living? No one knows. It's also not important. Sarah Kerrigan never really had a childhood and her background is the Ghost Program.

I think Blizzard just avoids mentioning family members unless it's particularly relevant. Maybe they want to avoid a Windrunner family situation. (They said Alleria's family was killed, but we later found out she only lost a brother, has at least two surviving sisters (although one is undead) and has a cousin and now one of her sisters has had twin half-elves.) Considering the Koprulu Sector, while having some obvious family elites, is still more egalitarian, I think family is less important to the plot than in the Warcraft universe.

BTW I couldn't find any reference to Duke's siblings on the wiki. There are three known family members of his (one by marriage) but we don't know their relations to him. I think one was older and one was younger, but Nova wasn't particularly clear about that.