ottarrus
Emperor Mongoose
Like you guys, I'm a Traveller fan. Like a lot, perhaps most, Traveller fans I am fascinated with the possibilities of military operations in a sci-fi setting. Part of that is because I myself am a veteran and a historian, but I think it's more than that. Science Fiction fans have discussed and studied futuristic military operations since HG Wells' 'The War of the Worlds' was published in 1897. Many other authors, ER Burroughs and Robert Heinlein none the least of which, have offered their opinions and blazed their trails in discussion, and this is, believe it or not, rather important. Fiction authors imagine technologies that spark the scientists' curiosities that lead the engineers to design the weapons that change the strategies and tactics the soldiers three or four generations hence ends up fighting with. And Traveller itself has contributed to the debates with Gauss weaponry and particle accelerators now in active experimentation.
Obviously, some of these technologies are promising [full body armors with temperature control and helmet electronics], others may not be the whizz-bang battlefield changers we'd hoped for [Gauss weaponry... the USN has abandoned 'rail gun' research]. And the first professional military branch solely dedicated to orbital warfare has been formed... albeit with no small amount of ridicule [including from yours truly].
The single task a science fiction military might undertake that draws the most discussion, argument, debate and interest is that of planetary invasion. This can be broken down into several sub-tasks and each of these has its discussion points:
a] the political and strategic need to take a world
b] establishing military control of a system
c] establishing military control of close orbit
d] suppression of local defenses
e] creating a landing zone
f] delivery of enough forces and logistics to make an invasion feasible
g] how to prosecute such an invasion
h] how to construct a peace after such an invasion.
Well, on youtube I found one of the most thoughtful and insightful videos about such an effort. It is a pretty good discussion starter that begins with the first essential question, 'Why do this in the first place?', and goes on from there. I highly recommend it for any science fiction armchair strategist out there for a lot of reasons... the discussions on the escalation ladder for one thing...
And since we have the advent of Mongoose's Mercenary boxed set, and with Mongoose's treatment of the 5th FFW on the horizon, now is a great time to bring this vid to your attention.
Quick warning, the video is comparatively long at 54 minutes. So grab a beverage, get comfortable, and let Operation Prodigal Son [the Imperial invasion of Terra during the Rim War] play in your head.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgN5yq362_s
Obviously, some of these technologies are promising [full body armors with temperature control and helmet electronics], others may not be the whizz-bang battlefield changers we'd hoped for [Gauss weaponry... the USN has abandoned 'rail gun' research]. And the first professional military branch solely dedicated to orbital warfare has been formed... albeit with no small amount of ridicule [including from yours truly].
The single task a science fiction military might undertake that draws the most discussion, argument, debate and interest is that of planetary invasion. This can be broken down into several sub-tasks and each of these has its discussion points:
a] the political and strategic need to take a world
b] establishing military control of a system
c] establishing military control of close orbit
d] suppression of local defenses
e] creating a landing zone
f] delivery of enough forces and logistics to make an invasion feasible
g] how to prosecute such an invasion
h] how to construct a peace after such an invasion.
Well, on youtube I found one of the most thoughtful and insightful videos about such an effort. It is a pretty good discussion starter that begins with the first essential question, 'Why do this in the first place?', and goes on from there. I highly recommend it for any science fiction armchair strategist out there for a lot of reasons... the discussions on the escalation ladder for one thing...
And since we have the advent of Mongoose's Mercenary boxed set, and with Mongoose's treatment of the 5th FFW on the horizon, now is a great time to bring this vid to your attention.
Quick warning, the video is comparatively long at 54 minutes. So grab a beverage, get comfortable, and let Operation Prodigal Son [the Imperial invasion of Terra during the Rim War] play in your head.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgN5yq362_s
