== Military Units ==Military units are a cultural covenant used to provide the command and control structures for groups of soldiers, city guard or police forces, etc. They have a cultural component because they reflect the culture which raises them.

The five aspects of a military unit are: Support, Command, Readiness, Espirit de Corps and Ensign.

  • Support -- the logistical forms or materials which make up the military unit and its outward form; the weapons available and their quality, maintenance and appropriateness
  • Command -- the mental component that which makes decisions for the military unit; the leaders and the respect they enjoy amond the rank-and-file
  • Readiness -- the strength of force which the unit can field, as well as their general training and preparedness
  • Esprit de Corps -- the spiritual component of the military unit serving as a kind of aggregate soul which defines its values, its sense of honor, and the standards which govern how they live up to those values
  • Ensign -- the historical element of the of the military unit; the battle-history, myths, and stories of the unit which serve as a kind of institutional memory as well as the ability the unit has to express them

Statistics

Statistics for military objects are:

  • Support:
    • Primary -- Unit Economy -- the economic solvency of the unit, its standing with the entity that raised it
    • Secondary -- Supply -- the ability the unit has to acquire weapons, armor, tools, food, quarters, and other material resources, and its ability to store, maintain, and distribute them among its force
  • Command:
    • Primary -- Respect -- the overall skill of the unit chain of command to inspire and lead their troops into battle
    • Secondary -- Leadership -- that which determines the degree to which the whole military unit follows decisions made by the leaders
  • Readiness:
    • Primary -- Martial Artistry -- the overall training, skill, and proficiency of members or sub-units
    • Secondary -- Effectives -- the number of troops the unit can field and remain effective
  • Esprit de Corps:
    • Primary -- Values -- the sense of honor and values which allows the military unit to express its culture's mores; the unit's collective soul
    • Secondary -- Standards -- the rules and regulations which express and enforce the unit's sense of honor and values
  • Ensign:
    • Primary -- Traditions -- the battles, histories, stories, and traditions which serve as the collective memory of the military unit and as templates for complex actions
    • Secondary -- Pageantry -- the quality of the storytelling by which these traditions are communicated to the membership of the military unit; includes crests, insignia, coat of arms, pennons, flags, salutes, and ceremonies

Traits

Only a few of the attributes for military units have been determined. So feel free to add them to this list. Now, this is no longer true. But you are still welcome to add to this list (which has now been depleted). We are particularly unsure about the traits relating to the Support.

Traits for military unit objects are (with the aspects which determine them in parens):

  • Unary traits:
    • Provision (Support)
    • Discipline (Command)
    • Soldiery (Readiness)
    • Morale (Esprit de Corps)
    • History (Ensign)
  • Binary traits:
    • Staff Support (Support over Command)
    • Training (Command over Readiness)
    • Martial Magic (Readiness over Esprit de Corps)
    • Confidence (Esprit de Corps over Ensign)
    • Library (Ensign over Support)
  • Trinary traits:
    • Technology (Support over Readiness over Command)
    • Motivation (Command over Esprit de Corps over Readiness)
    • Esprit de Corps (Readiness over Ensign over Esprit de Corps)
    • Paymaster (Esprit de Corps over Support over Ensign)
    • Identity (Ensign over Command over Support)
  • Quaternary traits:
    • Armor (Support over Esprit de Corps over Readiness over Command)
    • Decisiveness (Command over Ensign over Esprit de Corps over Readiness)
    • Forcepower (Readiness over Support over Ensign over Esprit de Corps)
    • Staff System (Esprit de Corps over Command over Support over Ensign)
    • Tactical Effectiveness (Ensign over Readiness over Command over Support)
  • Pentary trait:
    • Cohesion (Support-Command-Readiness-Esprit de Corps-Ensign)

Damage and Development

Damage and development in each of the five aspects of the unit works just like other composed objects -- see the Statistics topic for more info.

Support

'''Disruption of supply''' is the form of damage to which this aspect is vulnerable. Continued disruption of supply when the entire supply train has been destroyed can result in a particular form of death which results in a '''horde'''.

Bifurcation of Support occurs when the supply network is interdicted. Only the portion of the network to which the unit is connected is used to determine unit economy and supply.

Command

'''Insubordination''' is the form of damage to which this aspect is vulnerable. Continued insubordination when the respect has been destroyed can result in a particular form of death which results in a '''mob'''.

Bifurcation of Command occurs when a mutiny occurs. Only the portion of the command to which the unit is connected is used to determine leaders and respect.

Readiness

'''Kitchnerism''' is the form of damage to which this aspect is vulnerable. Continued Kitchnerism when the unit's martial arts have been destroyed can result in a particular form of death which results in a '''cadre'''.

Bifurcation of Readiness occurs when the unit is split. Only the portion of the unit to which the unit is connected is used to determine manpower and martial arts.

Esprit de Corps

'''Dishonor''' is the form of damage to which this aspect is vulnerable. Continued dishonorable conduct when standards have broken down completely can result in a particular form of death which results in a '''gang'''.

Bifurcation of Esprit de Corps occurs when the unit is raised from more than one political unit. Only the political unit from which the unit is raised is used to determine values and standards.

Ensign

'''Neglect''' is the form of damage to which this aspect is vulnerable. When the entire pageantry has been destroyed because of continued neglect, it can result in a particular form of death which results in a '''rabble'''.

Bifurcation of Ensign occurs when the unit has more than one version of its traditions. Only the version of the stories available to the unit is used to determine traditions and pageantry.

See also Combat, Massed Combat, Covenants, Cultural Covenants, Races and PoliticalUnits.

— ScotusTheProsyFaerie? - 27 May 2000
— Ged The Greys Hain - 18 Oct 2002 [Consolidated all the little branch topics into this one]
— GedTheGreysHain - 22 Nov 2002 [Switched Leadership and Respect]