An interesting theory offered by one of forum goers on Paradigm Infinitum's forum.
I do agree with most of this theory. It makes sense. Keeping IS and clans at each other's throats was the way Comstar or WoB would prefer doing while being the nice guy around. The intro of clans in 3050 threw the plans into the disorder as Comstar at the time cannot maintain its neutral stand anymore due to possibility of the clans running amok in the IS.

Hence the battle for Turkyyaid and Operation: Scorpion. WoB has been just following the way of the Old Comstar where they hope to control everything from the shadows.


"Die Iras" theories are as follows:

Arthur Steiner-Davion is Devlin Stone.
Devlin Stone is a WoB agent.
Collapse of Chaos March removes contentious no-mans land in which WoB operations can take place.
Jihad is a front to gain WoB Inner Sphere Power Base.
Pseudo destruction of WoB forces appears to quash threat of organization, reduces threat for reprisal.
Comstar collapses as a political organization due to association with WoB - Organization that has potential to understand WoB motives removed from picture.
Re-establishment of Terran Hegemony under guise of Republic of the Sphere by an "Enlightened" Devlin Stone.
Republic of the Sphere provides "public face" for WoB interests.
WoB is alive and well as an organization, operating out of former FWL.

Dark Age:
Devlin Stone disappears: Creation of mythical Messiah figure.
HPG network collapses in Republic.
Republic collapes under strain of holding disunited zone of space together.
Exarch Jonah Levin orders Fortress Republic based on orders left by "Messiah" stone.
Fortress Republic creates fortified area around Terra - WoB re-established hold on sacred world.
Creation of power vacuum in large zone of space.
Prompts system wide conflict from Clan and Inner Sphere powers. (Consistant with old "Divide & Rule" Succession War Era Comstar).



Essentially WoB has returned Inner Sphere to Status Quo and destroyed the moderate Comstar as a bonus. By creating diputed era of space with historical precedent of ownership, they have effectively instigated another pseudo Succession War between the powers of the Inner Sphere who obviously will not pass on a possible landgrab.

From WizKids, we know that before the collapse, the whole "Disarmed" Republic has been churning out BattleMechs like mad from supposedly "closed" factories such as the line on Irian. The 'Mechs have not been finding their way into the armies of the Republican Armed Forces. Where have they been going?

Easy.

W.o.B.

Meanwhile, they maintain power balance in the FWL by trying to play seperate parties against each other so they can use the chaos to consolidate their power base and continue to cackle evilly from Terra as the rest of the Inner Sphere ignores the remnants of the "Great Experiment" and kills each other to the benefit of Blake.

I mean... seriously...

An Elite bunch of Super-Soldiers called the Fidelis of which 7 can kill a BattleMech and who render Andurian uninhabitable with chemical weapons... Sounds like Manei Domini to me.