Bitterly divided, the galaxy hurtles for civil war.

On one side, the wounded but still mighty Grand Galactic Alliance gathers its massive resources for a conflict it believes inevitable—and easily won. On the other, the breakaway worlds of the Union of Free Stars struggle to assemble star fleets or even a functional government.

Both sides fear the Hell's Jesters. The Alliance cringes in anticipation of another of their partisan raids, which elude military reprisal and ruin corporate profit. The Union dreads their recklessness, which inflames passions and accelerates a conflict for which they're poorly-prepared.

But the oppressed peoples of the galaxy know Heroes when they see them. They remember the words of the Old Earth Bard who proclaimed, "Cry Havoc!"

Let slip the Jesters of War.