The ongoing Guild Wars had diverted resources away from the planet and, according to his father, most of the other worlds, too. His parents had enough to worry about already. “But Shiloh is a bitch either way.” The tedious grind had been difficult for the restless eighteen-year-old to get used to, but he had suffered through the first few weeks of the vespene gas ration with no complaints. “She blows hot, and she blows cold,” Raynor’s father liked to say. After a brief interlude, winter would fall like a hammer and the land would be covered with a thick layer of white.
The gently rolling farmland was parched, and had been for more than a month, with the hottest weather still ahead. Through the open window of the truck’s cab, Raynor scanned the familiar landscape. During the hour he’d already spent in the line, he’d memorized every scuff and speck of dirt on the back end of the truck in front of him. Jim Raynor, squinting behind a pair of mirrorshades, brought the tanker to a stop, switched off the ignition, and leaned back. Hardest hit are the independent farmers, and bankruptcies on Confederate agrarian worlds are rising sharply.” Max Speer, Evening Report for UNN November 2487 THE PLANET SHILOH, THE CONFEDERACY OF MAN The early morning sun was a blinding ball of fire in the sky, and the hot air shimmered as it rose off the long queue of fuel trucks that snaked the curve and disappeared over the rise beyond. The resultant increases in military spending have hurt other sectors of the economy, with some of the most significant drops in agricultural support in years. This book is dedicated to my editor, Jaime Costas, who was incredibly supportive from beginning to end, a tireless problem solver, and the inspiration for some really great lines!Īcknowledgments I would like to thank the Blizzard team for creating wonderful games, three-dimensional characters, and allowing me to play in the StarCraft universe.ĬHAPTER ONE “With Kel-Morian attacks spread across three of the five contested zones in the Koprulu sector, Confederate forces have been hard-pressed to keep a consistent response to the mining guilds’ recent hit-and-run guerilla tactics. Endleaf art by the Blizzard Film Department Manufactured in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available. Pace Interior art by Wei Wang, Steve Hui, and Luke Mancini of Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. For more information or to book an event contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-86 or visit our website at Designed by Aline C. For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866506-1949 or The Simon and Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For information address Gallery Books Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020 First Gallery Books hardcover edition April 2010 GALLERY and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. StarCraft and Blizzard Entertainment are trademarks or registered trademarks of Blizzard Entertainment, Inc., in the U.S. Copyright © 2010 Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
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