Difference between revisions of "Roudland Army"

Revision as of 15:41, 17 October 2006

The Army

Roudland believes that with a well-trained group of men on the ground, victory is very likely. This is why the Army is the best funded branch of the Armed Forces and easily the largest. It is also the largest employer in Roudland itself and takes up almost 66% of all military spending.

Whereas the Navy and Air Force are both moderately sized, the Army is massive, consisting of 3 separate armies which each contain around 400,000 infantrymen (160,000 Mechanised, 160,000 Airbourne, and 80,000 Marines), 10,000 engineers, 2,500 Spearman MBTs, and 300,000 conscripts, used in a logistical support role. The Infantry are used in large numbers, and their deployments are carefully planned and executed. For this reason, infantry are equipped almost identically, whether they are deployed from a Rhino, a Viper or a Thompson. There follows a list of infantry kit.

Each soldier carries:

• G36K Rifle or variant

• USP Pistol

• Mk 3 Frag Grenades

• FD2 Phosphorous Grenades

• Compact (Night Sight) Binos

• Ration Pack

• Archer Radio Set

• Combat Knife

Each soldier wears:

o Combat jacket and trousers (camo)

o Gothrian Kevlar (Gothlar) body armour

o CAT boots with wrap-around Gothlar protection

o RoudCorp AX 10 Combat Helmet

o Combat webbing with space for 12 primary mags, 6 secondary, and 6 grenades

o Small MediKit in hip pouch

Descriptions of key items

Gothrian Defence manufactures the Body Armour that infantrymen wear. It uses an advanced lightweight Kevlar fabric that spreads the impact of bullet hits, therefore dissipating the energy. In some tests, Gothlar has withstood multiple hits from 5.56mm rounds at 10 metres, and some 9mm rounds at almost point-blank range.

RoudCorp manufactures the AX 10 helmet that is worn by all infantrymen. The helmet is comfortable and uses lightweight materials. It incorporates a HUD that flips down over whichever eye the user does not aim with. The HUD is 4.5cm x 3cm, and can display video messages from command bases, as well as the latest tactical messages and satellite readouts. The helmet includes a small antenna to receive these signals, as well as a GPS beacon so that the user and his commander can see the location of any soldier at any time, often in relation to real-time satellite imagery of the battlefield. A Roudland/ Gothria/ Great Wrightland Defence conglomerate designed the helmet itself, and the GPS system was designed by a Violet Strawberries government research department.

Infantry Squad Structure

Roudland infantry works in squads of 8 or 16, with at least a Lance Corporal in command, if not a Sergeant or Staff Sergeant. The squads are designed to be able to function well on their own, and are armed heavily enough to sustain a firefight for several hours. Each squad normally has anti-armour capability, although this is not enforced when intelligence suggests that there will be no need. However, the final say goes to the c/o. There follows a description of a typical 8-man squad and the weapons they carry:

• 1 Commander (G36K)

• 1 Radioman (G36K)

• 2 Machine Gunners (MG36)

• 3 Riflemen (G36K)

• 1 Heavy Rifleman (G36K and Hornet)

This structure can vary, because of factors such as they vehicle they are carried in (an Airbourne squad will typically be lighter than a Mechanised squad), or the task they are asked to perform (a Tank Hunting squad will have 3 or 4 Heavy Riflemen, whereas an emplacement defence team may have a sniper and more MGs), but typically it remains the same.

Types of Infantry

All types of infantry have the same basic training, and so in a ground battle, they are near identical in their abilities and combat style. The thing that differentiates the infantry types is the way they are deployed, the vehicles that they travel in, and the tasks that they are given.

===Mounted or Mechanised Infantry=== - Carried to battle in a Thompson IFV, Mechanised Infantry are traditionally used to capture or overwhelm heavily armed enemy positions. This includes forts, key installations, towns, cities, and even mountains and tall hills.

===Airbourne Infantry=== - Carried in a Rhino Mk 5 Dropship, these troops are of the Rapid Assault/Reaction variety. Generally used for large deployments or surgical drops, Airbourne soldiers are used to having to fight their way out of their landing zone, such is their commanders' confidence in their ability.

===Marines=== -Only the toughest, fittest, most intelligent soldiers will be accepted into the Roudland Marines. Marines are normally used as the frontline in an invasion using an amphibious landing element, and are also often entrusted with spearheading other attacks, no matter where it might take place. They travel to battle in Rhinos, Thompsons, and Viper ALVs.

===Engineers=== - Armies cannot function without equipment that works, vehicles that are maintained, bridges to cross and bases to command from. Roudland knows this, and so places a division of 10,000 Engineers with each Army. They travel in WOLF jeeps, and, unless needed, will not operate in ordinary combat.

===Mobile Infantry=== - These are the conscripted element of Roudland's Army, and so will not see combat unless absolutely needed. They are trained in basic warfare skills, and often act as logistical support or base staff on a large operation. They can also be used as National Guard or border staff in Roudland itself, support for humanitarian work, and DMZ border guard support personnel, as in between Gothria and Mortuus Angelus, and the Zakmenistani DMZ.

===Orbital Marines=== - The strongest, most intelligent, battle-hardened Marines and Airbourne troops can be selected for the Orbital Marines. These soldiers are stationed aboard Conciliator Battle Cruisers, and travel in Rhino Mk 6a VDODs (Vertical Descent Orbital Dropship). Often, Orbital Marines are given experimental weapons and equipment, and are used in a variety of roles, from boarding enemy ships to creating an advanced beachhead; Orbital Marines are Roudland's foot soldiers in space.

===Shock Commandos=== - The Roudland government does not accept the existence of the Shock Commando programme, and this is for a good reason. The Shock Commandos are genetically modified soldiers, taken from birth and raised to be nothing more than a highly-efficient killing machine. Army Intelligence chooses only a select few children, noticeable for their natural abilities and potential, and abducts them from the hospital. The parents are told that their child has perished, and the infant itself is taken to a highly secure military compound to begin augmentation, conditioning and training. Commandos are 'designed' to be the perfect soldier; their brain is conditioned to remember large amounts of information, their eyes are fitted with Iris inserts to give them ultra-clear day and night vision, their muscles are fine tuned and upgraded, their respiratory systems are vastly increased in capacity. The Roudland military hierarchy does not believe in turning soldiers into machines; for this reason, Shock Commandos are not cyborgs like the Super Roman Spartans. Instead, the Commandos are physically conditioned to be better soldiers-they are not ‘super soldiers’, rather, they are just very good combatants. The only technology contained within their bodies is that of a high-spec iris insert. On top of their conditioning, they accumulate a large tactical knowledge in their 16-year training programme, their weapons skills are unparalleled, they have unstinting morale and they are totally committed to their objective. A Shock Commando will never leave its post, will never surrender, and, if captured, will never give up information. They are used in many roles, on land and in space, and travel to battle in modified Rhino Mk 6 dropships. They are used sparingly by Roudland.

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