Solomani Confederation (Military)

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Assignments


Basic training has to be more or less the same across all assignments:

Athletics zero
Military etiquette, courtesy and protocol (doesn't count, but may increase your educational level)
Gun combat/slug thrower zero


Advanced training:

SpaceTrooper/E1 Trooper - Gun combat/slug thrower one
Melee zero
Recon zero
Vacc suit zero

MotorizedInfantry/E1 Soldier - Gun combat/slug thrower one
Melee zero
Recon zero
Drive/wheeled zero

CarBineer/E1 Provost - Investigate zero
Melee zero
Recon zero
Drive/wheeled zero


Civil Affairs/S1 Clerk - Admin zero
Steward zero
Electronics zero
Drive/wheeled zero

Logistics/S1 Transporter - Navigator zero
Admin zero
Mechanics zero
Drive/wheeled zero

K9/S1 Dog handler - Animal zero
Recon zero
Electronics zero
Driver/wheeled zero

Bugler/S1 Musician - Art/Bugle zero
Recon zero
Electronics zero
Driver/wheeled zero

Combat Camera/S1 Cameraman - Art/Holography zero
Recon zero
Electronics zero
Drive/wheeled zero

Signals/S1 Signalman - Electronics/communications one
Electronics zero
Language zero
Drive/wheeled zero

Combat Engineer/S1 Pioneer - Explosives
Combat engineering zero
Mechanics zero
Drive/wheeled zero

Aviationist/S1 Drone Operator - Electronics/remote operations one
Flyer/rotorcraft zero
Electronics/remote operations zero
Driver/wheeled zero

Heavy weapons/S1 Gunner - Heavy weapons/man portable one
Mechanics zero
Electronics zero
Heavy weapons/man portable zero

Combat Medic/S1 Medic - Medic zero
Science biology zero
Electronics/(medical) sensors zero
Driver/wheeled zero

Culinary/S1 Prep cook - Steward one
Steward zero
Profession cook zero
Drive/wheeled zero


Deployment:

Off-planet
Vacc suit
or, Electronics zero

Rural
Survival
or, Stealth

Urban
Streetwise
or, Stealth


Logistician
S0 Bagboy
S1 Transporter - Navigator zero
S2 Supplier
S3 Stockist
S4 Logistician
S5 Procurer
S6 Quartermaster

Combat Medician
S0 Candy striper
S1 Medic
S2 Hello nurse
S3 Head nurse
S4 Medical doctor

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Aftermath

After the major combatants of the Solomani Navy have pounded the planetary defenses to slag, heavy assault shuttles start ferrying Solomani Army armoured units to give whatever remaining cohesive ground formations something to focus on, while Confederation Marines drop in on Cee Three nodes.

As the clean up starts, SolSec squads start rounding up politically suspect suspects while the indigenous population is still shell shocked.

At this point, ULTRARecruiting teams set up shop to recruit likely local lads and lasses into the Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps, to assist the Army and SolSec to restore security and normality back to the electorate.

The Navy starts withdrawing it's heavy units, and redeploys them to remind other member worlds the Confederation's capability to project power, most certainly within interior lines. Temporarily, the Navy takes over the running of the system Aerospace Force and Home Guard naval units.

The SCMP creates a divisional command for the system, administered by a general officer that rose through the SCMP ranks. SCMP brigades are created as required, SolSec and the Navy have one each, staffed by the more ideologically reliable and technically proficient recruits, respectively.

The Navy takes over the high port, and the more ambitious of their Marine officers and NCOs are assigned to take over command slots in the newly recruited SpaceTrooper battalions, though normally one is sufficient, with an ULTRAMarine company and a TERMINATOR platoon shipped in, one for missions in the asteroid belts and outer planets, and the other to stiffen up the new recruits, or for the really tough missions.

Generally, a single battalion is enough to control the highport, though in a more developed system, more battalions could be recruited, and more ULTRAMarine companies called in.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Footnotes

1. The minimum expected from the MotorizedInfantry is Gun combat/slug thrower one, as well as military etiquette and discipline; driving, athletics and melee can be acquired later. This is important for those recareering in the SCMC.

2. SpaceTrooper recruits need Vacc suit zero, as well as the basic basics.

3. CarBineers can make do with Gun combat/slug thrower zero, and survive SolSec vetting.

4. Generally, four brigades are immediately set up, the Navy establishes theirs in the high port, size very much dependent on how much they have to patrol and garrison the outer system; the Army's on how much countryside they have to maintain a presence in; SolSec as to maintain security in urban areas and control access; and the fourth one which is a combination boot camp and pool for attaching SCMC units to regular forces as required.

5. After the member world is welcomed back into the forgiving embrace of the Solomani Movement, SCMC members may transfer to the new military and Home Guard units that SolSec reestablishes.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Organization

For doctrinal reasons, I gave the SCMC a basic triangular formation, since a span of control of three subunits, plus support, plus a headquarters element seems to be about the optimum most commanding officers and their staff can control.

It starts off with the basic cell, though you could name them triads, but cell sounds better. One guy can control two others and himself. Also, it's easier to tell two guys to follow someone.

A team would be adding support to the cell, like a driver.

Squad size seems dictated by the passenger capacity of the personnel carriers available, so we're actually luckier than our real life military staff counterparts, in that we can modify or design our own transports.

Though at this basic level, the magic numbers tend to be two and three.

It might look a little contradictory to have three men cells, when you'd think triangular would be four man teams, but the leader also has to keep an eye on himself, and it's easier to tell two guys to follow that guy. If attrition is a serious problem for a six man squad, you'd think it would be worse for a three men cell. Au contraire, basically it allows eyes forward, eyes left and eyes right, and a two man cell is still functional, the survivor can eventually join up with another cell, and the high leadership ratio minimizes cluelessness amongst of the rank and file.

You could have a minimum squad of six men, which would consist of the sixer, the squad leader leading one cell, and a seconder, the assistant squad leader keeping an eye on the second cell.

So the triangular theme makes the basic squad three cells plus a squad leader.

SpaceTrooper squads are led by Confederation Marine corporals, and can exchange a rifle cell with a heavy weapons one, or attach a heavy weapons cell, together with signals, medical and driver specialists. This would be closer in size and capability to a United States Marine Corps squad, and presumably, to it's successor, the Colonial Marines.

MotorizedInfantry squads would be led by either experienced Solomani Army or activated Home Guard NCOs; Solomani Army tend to specialize in armoured warfare, so light infantry would be a stretch for them, though their special forces do tend to come under this category, and traditionally, some were trained to recruit and lead indigenous forces.

CarBineer squads would be under SolSec internal Security troops; three subunits might be stretching their supervisory capabilities.

While the Confederation populate the senior NCO and officer slots of the SpaceTrooper brigade with ambitious and usually enthusiastic NCOs and junior officers, the battalion and brigade senior NCO slot is given to an experienced and proven Marine NCO, as are the respective commander slots to experienced Marine officers.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Footnotes

1. Fun and games aside, I've been reminded that you may have to occupy a place for two generations, to enact permanent change; the Navy won't hang around that long, the Confederation Marines have other things to do.

2. The Solomani Army may start establishing ground bases, and SolSec infiltrate all layers of society, but neither would want potshots taken at their more overt presence, which is why you recruit locally for the SCMC.

3. It's likely that you have to look around an armed presence of one percent of the local populace, so lots of brigades.

4. You may be wondering, why bugles?

5. While the Solomani Navy, Marines, Army and SolSec are likely to maintain the latest in tech level fourteen electronics and equipment, for SCMC formations, they'd be concentrated at the brigade level, and possibly a communications team at the battalion command element, but the rest have to make do with available equipment, which may just be a cell phone.

6. First thing I'd do in any combat encounter would be to try to jam sensors and communications, which shouldn't be too difficult for an SCMC unit; but a bugle, possibly with encoded analogue data could be picked up.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Weapons

The ideal rifle has a range of four hundred metres, which would be a tech level eleven laser rifle, PGMP/FGMPs, and the Advanced Combat Rifle.

Since those aren't available at tech level six, they'll have to make do with an autorifle at three hundred metres.

In theory, self loading rifles should be available at tech level five, with a magazine capacity of twenty but non-automatic; going by ye rifle, range is reduced to two hundred fifty metres.

That means short range in terms of spaceship squares would be forty two, which should be sufficient for most Adventure class corridors.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Aftermath

Solomani forces start collecting all firearms and energy weapons, with the exception of those primarily used in hunting, nothing larger than a five bullet capacity..

The Solomani Army takes over and becomes responsible for all surface planetary defences, the Navy establishes four interdiction platforms in orbit which double as secure communication nodes and long range sensors, while SolSec secures and controls any remaining meson deep sites.

You may be wandering why tech level six autorifles are issued to the newly raised SCMC units; having confiscated all other weaponry, any insurgency will need to raid existing armouries or capture weapons from occupying troops, and if there is no serious insurgency, it doesn't matter what kind of rifle the troops are equipped with.

SolSec will probably move the planetary capital to a more isolated and defensible site, and rebuild it, ensuring that their newly selected political sock puppets can neither be influenced nor intimidated by their electorate.

The Army will probably build continental bases for regional commands.

The Navy may establish a Space Patrol service, from confiscated and requisitioned merchantmen and and remaining and repairable warships. A Captain will be left in charge of system Naval assets as the FleetRon(s) redeploy to other systems.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Weapons

Automatic rifle
. tech level six
. combat knife/bayonette tech level two
. aiming aids
.. telescopic scope tech level five
.. low light scope tech level seven
.. laser sight tech level eight
. grip mono pod
. folding stock
. suppressor tech level eight
. rifle grenade
. shoulder sling
. cleaning kit

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation: The Right to Bare Arms

For the Solomani Navy, their pressing concern would be the need to create a large pool of experienced pilots that they can call on when the balloon goes up; for the Army it has to be the need for overwhelming numbers of cannon fodder who have a clue which end of a gun to point at the enemy, in order to have the personnel to overrun all those lost territories that they will be liberating from the Imperium, in the not too distant future.

Gun familiarity, especially that of slug throwers, means that the Solomani Constitution guarantees the right for the civilian electorate to have and be allowed to use slug throwing smallarms for hunting, sport and self defence, with certain restrictions on ammunition, type and capacity. Though you might be able to get permits and licences for the rest.

You can't normally have guns built of materials that make them difficult to detect, and shortened weapons, like sawn off shotguns would in most jurisdictions be illegal.

But for the fun factor, there should be very little restrictions on traditional Solomani weapons, mainly the hunting rifle, the six chambered revolver, and the basic (not semi-automatic assault) shotgun.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Vehicles

Ten-tonne mine-resistant Carrier, Armoured, Standard, Personnel, Explosive Resistant

Crew of one or two, twelve passengers with twelve firing ports.

You can attach stuff on top:

And the pick up variant:

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Vehicles

So I was browsing to see if I can find the SCMC some helicopters, when I came across the Assault Station, listed as a rotorcraft.

It looks like a mini version of SHIELD's helicarrier, constructed at tech level nine, and costs only eighty million credits. This would make one helluva impression on the occupied populace.

Lower down the food chain, you have your basic tech level six light transport helicopter, with a pilot and six passengers. Medium transport helicopter with twelve passengers is available at tech level five.

The tech level ten Carryall looks pretty disappointing. I may have been expecting something closer to Dune's.

Next up would be the tech level seven three man Scout helicopter, though I suspect it would soon be supplanted by the unmanned drone.

I guess you should give the SCMC attack helicopters, more for the intimidation factor.

Tiltrotors seem to be missing, which would be the SCMC's primary mode of air transport.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Vehicles

The thing about the air/raft, is that it could be the single most useful vehicle that the Ground Forces could possess, not counting tanks when the balloon goes up.

At a quarter of million schmuckers, it lies well within normal military procurement costs, if you check out how much they're willing to spend on actual wheeled vehicles, and this one can float everywhere, and is available at tech level eight.

A middle class family couldn't afford to buy a new one, or even a used one, but going by starship maintenance costs, probably could afford to pay for careful maintenance; repair would probably require a mortgage.

But licensing fees and airspace restrictions will most likely keep it grounded in the garage, at least in urban and suburban areas. The very rich and first responders could be the only ones using them in the civilian sphere, plus the ability to park it in low orbit and act as a sensor and communications node.

Outside of the fun of trying to work within a given set of limitations, the practical aspect why I artificially restrict military use of grav vehicles to the Solomani Army and associated Hone Guard , and despite it never being mentioned, professional planetary ground force services, is to balance off the Solomani Navy's near monopoly of space-going warships and craft. Which means they can operate everything else without permission or supervision.

That leaves the SCMC without grav vehicles or spaceships, since they're meant to be an auxiliary force; on a more pragmatic level, any insurgency is most likely to steal or capture equipment from them. And infiltration would be easiest here.

An independent SCMC brigade would have Solomani Army or activated Home Guard grav cavalry unit attached, most likely a reconnaissance company and a tank platoon.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Navy: FleetRons, Signalling, Presence and Deterrence

The old debate about the usefulness of the nuclear triad had me thinking again about the over emphasis by the Solomani on capital ships.

If you remember from the Honorverse, the People's Republic of Haven had a more balanced force, because they had more territory to cover, no one cares if a battleship, dreadnought or super dreadnought is floating overhead a subjugated world, because you're still going to get thrashed. Besides budget and industrial base constraints.

When the Solomani decide to make a point, and underline it with a naval presence, they send an entire FleetRon. Not a cruiser, not a battle division, but six massive fast dreadnoughts with all the fleet support elements. And if they want to make that point to the Imperium, it turns up along the Neutral Zone.

This concentration of tonnage, means that the Navy isn't going to be everywhere in force, though a detached battle division transiting into any system should shore up any wavering loyalty amongst the true believers.

The FleetRons act as both a physical reminder of the Solomani military power, and the deterrence of any overt military action against the Confederation; the Cats are probably far more impressed than the Imperium.

The second leg of the triad would have to be the Solomani capability to mobilize large numbers of ground forces, to overrun any planetary defence, and the shipping capacity and capability to successfully deploy them on those planets.

The third leg is unknown to the Imperium, and is responsible in large part for the apparent lack of cruiser construction.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Military: Terms of Service

Ideally, you deploy a unit for a six month combat tour once every three years.

Mayhap, you can shorten a Solomani Army term from four years to three?

The SCMC recruit will be lucky to get a six months training course, and spend the rest of his term looking over his shoulder.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: SpaceTroopers Squad

T0 Recruit
T1 Trooper
T2 Lance Corporal
T3 Lance Sergeant

Squad
. Command cell
.. Squad leader - Confederation Marine Corporal
.. Assistant squad leader - Lance Sergeant
.. Runner - Trooper

. Support cell
.. Signaller - Signaller
.. Medic - Medic
.. Combat Engineer - Sapper

. Rifle cell
.. Cell leader - Lance Corporal
.. Rifleman - Trooper
.. Rifleman - Trooper

. Rifle cell
.. Cell leader - Lance Corporal
.. Rifleman - Trooper
.. Rifleman - Trooper

. Rocket launcher cell
.. Cell leader - Bombardier
.. Ammunition bearer - Gunner
.. Ammunition bearer - Gunner

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Marines: Assignments

The Confederation Marines do have a Holy Trinity of assignments:

Assault: Regardless whether in space or on the ground.

Commando: Sometimes you need a scalpel, rather than a battle axe.

Cadre: Leading, training and inspiring others; sometimes referred to as military advisers.

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Navy

Space System Security Supply Support Starship

I wanted to see how that sounded; it's basically a mothership built with off the shelf components to civilian specifications on a merchantman hull.

. Training and Defence Engagement
. Salvage, Repair and Firefighting
. Medical support
. Experimentation and Systems Development
. Survey
. Mine Countermeasures
. Orbit to Ground Logistics Support
. Space and Orbital Security
. Special Forces Support
. Disaster Relief
. Spaceship Rescue
. Aerospace Support

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: ULTRAMarine Squad


U0 SpaceTrooper (Lance Corporal)
U1 Marine
U2 Corporal
U3 Sergeant
U4 First Sergeant
U5 Staff Sergeant
U6 Quartermaster


M0 Recruit
M1 Marine
M2 Corporal
M3 Sergeant
M4 Gunnery Sergeant
M5 Master Sergeant
M6 Sergeant Major
M7 Command Sergeant
M8 Command Sergeant Major
M9 Inspector General of the Solomani Confederation Marine Corps


ULTRAMarine Squad

. Command team
.. Squad leader - Sergeant
.. Signaller - Signaller
.. Medic - Medic
.. Combat Engineer - Sapper

. Fire Team
.. Fire team leader - Corporal
.. Rifleman - Marine
.. Rifleman - Marine
.. Gaussman - Marine

. Fire Team
.. Fire team leader - Corporal
.. Rifleman - Marine
.. Rifleman - Marine
.. Gaussman - Marine

 

[Condottiere]

Solomani Confederation Mobile Corps: Vertical Envelopment

While the original Rogue Trooper had an interesting concept, stories tended to be rather boring since the four main characters weren't that compelling, perhaps a candidate for a graphic novel or mini series, had that been an option.

One thing has has made an impression on me, besides Venus Bluegenes, were Sun Legions, plus a discussion elsewhere on gliders and vertical envelopment, one of the reasons that I do believe that any military force has to have some control over aircraft, even if it's only helicopters.

I'm not advocating hang gliders, since you can steer parachutes; actual assault gliders require one of two pilots in order to bring it successfully and fairly safely to the landing zone, which resources can probably to allocated better to rotorcraft.

The issue is less getting troops there, it's getting their heavyish equipment there, like transport and an armoured car, in a relatively cheap, one shot way that wouldn't risk scarce reusable transport assets nor their expensively trained pilots.

So the successor to the assault glider is a large pallet, with a very large steerable parachute, shoved out of the back of an aerospace transport.

 

[Condottiere]

Confederation Marines: Possible Size

There probably are one thousand assault battalions, with a million Marines, not counting trainees, cadre and commandos.

If true, they would be heavily concentrated on the naval depots and FleetRons, unlikely as security details for Starports. embassies and consulates, most likely covered by Military Police for a softer power projection.

For the Starports, SpaceTrooper units could be used, led by Marine cadres, since member worlds might prefer that than having a permanent garrison of an icon of Solomani Confederation power projection overhead.