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Payback was set to be published in November of 1998, it was delayed to to Spring of 1999 (Scrye 3.5 August 1998) and then cancel see (Scource 2).
The image below reads:
"Payback, the sixth expansion for the popular BattleTechtrading card games picks up where Crusade™ left off, concluding the storyline from FASA's Twilight of the Clans novel series. Expect more might 'Mechs® and other new cards, all employing the latest in battle technology.
Approximately 100 new cards

Format: Trading Card Game
Designed for: Intermeadiate to Advanced Players
"

Assuming "Approximately 100 new cards" follows the pattern of recent standard BattleTech expansions (Mechwarrior 108, Arsenal 108, Crusade 107) sets then Payback would have 108 cards with 1/3 each of commons, uncommons, and rare cards. The below table of averages Operation Revival has determined the likely distribution of cards by type and faction group.

Which applied here results in these targets for the number of cards:

Given the offical description of the Payback expansion is" "Payback, the sixth expansion for the popular Battletechtrading card games picks up where Crusade™ left off, concluding the storyline from FASA's Twilight of the Clans novel series."
We clearly know the content of the expansion to be related to the remaining fiction covered in that series. So that sets us the end point narratively with Falcon Rising. The next question becomes, how far into the Twilight of the Clans stry arc did Crusade take the CCG's story? To determine the answer we must follow the clues in the cards.

The Crusade expansion flavor text provides some of the best indication of how far into the Twilight of the clans story Crusade expansion went, below are the 7 quotes from 3059, the latest date on any BattleTech card:

• Card Title: Aris Sung, text: "Without the Warrior Houses, the Capellan State would collapse as the eagle falls without her wings."--Commander Aris Sung, House Hiritsu, 3059
• Card Title: Blaze of Glory, text: Seeing no escape, Judith Faber opened all her weapons ports. At least she'd take the SOBs with her. --Excerpt from Warriors Collected, 3059
• Card Title: Breaking the Envelope, text: "Glory removes all pain. A glorious death is the stairway to the Remembrance." --Khan Perigard Zalman, Clan Steel Viper, 3059
• Card Title: DEST Commando Sabotage, text: "The Draconis Elite Strike Team are perhaps the finest-trained units in the entire Combine. There is no form of close-range combat these warriors can't use to disable a foe in less than a second." --Faith Chalmers, DEST Captain, 3059
• Card Title: Heat of Battle, text: How can I breathe? In the smoke In the screams How can I breathe In the heat of battle? --Anonymous, from Battlefield Poetry, 3059
• Card Title: Move to Dubious Cover, text "Protect HQ. Protect your 'Mech. Protect yourself. In that order, soldier!" --Captain Mike Cooper, First Marik Militia, 3059
• Card Title: Political Stranglehold, text: "Without information your enemies are fish out of water, so obviously in trouble none of their fellows will come to their aid." --Duchess Candace Liao, 3059

The above cards provide the following clues: Blaze of Glory contains a reference to Judith Faber who is a character in the Novel Exodus Road, the card Judith Faber makes reference to her deep cover spy mission to find the location of the Clan Home worlds. The Expasion name "Crusade" is a reference to the Ne Star League (a card within the set) striking back at the Clans for revenge, this represents Operation Bird Dog However, not Operation Bullddog as that would have included Nova Cat faction Cards to tell that part of the story.

Our next clue comes from the units included in the expansion, if you consult the manufacturing timeline and match it against all of the units from the Crusade expansion set. You will see the most recent unit to make an apperance are the: Firestarter FS9-OF and Blackwatch BKW-7R first manufactured in 3060 and 3061 respectively. This was in all likihood was an oversight on the part of WOTC by including 'Mechs which likely should have been included 1 expansion later in Payback. The overwhleming majority of Inner Sphere units from Crusade are from 3056-3058, most Clan units ofcourse are actually 2nd line units first manufactured at earlier dates.

Next we can look to the images and other content of the cards, do they reference a particular event? Is an image of some action or character something that could only occur on or after a given date?

• Exodus Road - Blaine Lee Pardoe (August 1997)
• Grave Covenant - Michael A. Stackpole (September 1997)
• The Hunters - Thomas S. Gressman (December 1997)
• Freebirth - Robert Thurston (February 1998)
• Sword and Fire - Thomas S. Gressman (August 1998)
• Shadows of War - Thomas S. Gressman (September 1998)
• Prince of Havoc - Michael A. Stackpole (December 1998)
• Falcon Rising - Robert Thurston (March 1999)

Crusade was released November 2nd, 1998 after being pushed back from a July 1998 published date. We know from SCRYE #3.5 (August 1998) that Payback was pushed back to 1999.
This means we can assume Payback's original release date was probably November 1998.

Given the publishing timeline above, and that the last title Falcon Rising is more of a sequal to the Jade Falcon Trilogy than an continuation of the Twilight of the clans story line it is safe to assume Payback expaions would advance the story forward to the around July 3060 when task force Serpent would leave clan space. Therefore Payback would include the major events of Operation Bulldog, Task Force Serpent, The Trial of Annhiliation against the Smoke Jaguars on Huntress, and the Great Refusal on Strana Mechty, but would conclude before any references to theevents preceding the FedCom Civil War.

Proposed Cards: