The SOS Imperial Marine Corps is a branch of the Holy Empire of Haruhi Suzumiya's armed forces responsible for terrestrial military operations and the defense of SOS Imperial Navy ships and installations.
Organization[]
The basic organization of all SOS Imperial Marine Corps combat units follows the "rule of threes," which places three subordinates under a commander, not counting support elements. The organization and weapons are from the Marine Corps Table of Organization and Equipment standard. Note that these are principles instead of hard rules; units are free to deviate from the TO&E (e.g. with 4 subordinate units instead of 3, or a commander who is a rank above or below the rank specified) according to manpower and mission needs. Supporting units have their own organization and equipment but generally also follow the "rule of threes."
Game Info
- 3,000 points spent at game start
- Starting numbers: 40 million troops @ 40,000 personnel/$1, 3x kit modifier
Rank Structure[]
The SOS Imperial Marine Corps and SOS Imperial Guard have a shared rank structure for commissioned officers, which is in turn based on those of the historic United States and British Armies. Rank insignia is based on those of the historic United States Armed Forces.
The enlisted rank structure and insignia of the SOS Imperial Marine Corps are based on those of the historic United States Marine Corps.
Equipment[]
Infantry Equipment[]
The standard issue weapons for the SOS Imperial Marine Corps are the M17 gauss pistol, M36 phased plasma pulse pistol, M48 phased plasma pulse assault rifle, M281 phased plasma pulse battle rifle, and M66 automatic gauss rifle. Designated marksmen use either the M62 semi-auto gauss rifle or modified versions of the M281 and M66, while snipers operate the M61 ion rifle, M63 laser rifle, and M110 semi-auto gauss rifle for both anti-materiel and anti-personnel duties. Vehicle crews are typically issued the M18 gauss submachine gun. The M101 semi-automatic and M74 semi-auto/pump-action shotguns are popular weapons for close-quarters combat.
Support fire is typically provided by the M358 general purpose gauss machine gun. Heavier support weapons, such as the M597 heavy gauss machine gun, M79 gauss cannon, M749 laser cannon, and M570 automatic grenade launcher, are typically seen mounted on vehicles or in stationary positions; in theory, such weapons can be mounted on or otherwise made man-portable by a sufficiently strong suit of power armor, though in practice, the SOS Imperial Marine Corps has not invested much in heavy power armor...yet.
Hand grenades of various types are standard issue for all SOS Imperial Marine Corps combat personnel. Dedicated grenadiers are typically issued the M412 underslung launcher, which can be attached to the M48, M281, and M66 rifles; the M430 stand-alone pump-action launcher and M621 semi-automatic launcher are also available for use depending on mission needs.
Anti-armor and anti-fortification fire is typically provided by the M52 unguided rocket launcher, the FGM/FIM-262 dual-purpose guided missile, and the M17 infantry-portable laser cannon; the M52 can also be used for anti-personnel work if loaded with the appropriate ammunition, while the M17 can double as a highly effective anti-personnel weapon in a pinch. The M6046 flamethrower is a common heavy incendiary weapon, typically used for boarding actions, urban warfare, and other close-quarters situations where heavy infantry presence is expected.
The current standard for SOS Imperial Marine Corps personal armor is the M74 Modular Powered Armor System, which provides full NBC, radiological, and nanite protection, is highly resistant to extreme temperatures and most small arms fire, and is equipped with an integrated medical system and highly sophisticated networking gear. Lighter and heavier variants are available and issued depending on mission requirements. All variants of the M74 MPAS are vacuum-rated.
Ground Vehicles[]
The primary light vehicle of the SOS Imperial Marine Corps is the M720 Super Puma light utility vehicle, a highly adaptable design used for various tasks such as scouting and troop transport. For operations in more hostile environments, the M53 Tiger armored car is used instead. The chassis of the M53 Tiger is also used as the basis for three different combat vehicles: The M55 Habu light self-propelled artillery vehicle, the M57 Bakemono combat support vehicle, and the M59 Okami MLRS/air defense vehicle.
The primary vehicles of the SOS Imperial Marine Corps' armored units are the M423 Juggernaut heavy IFV, M919 Scorpion II light tank, and M210 Samurai main battle tank. For threats that cannot be handled by the Scorpion II or the Samurai, the M38 Shogun heavy tank can be called upon; the chassis of the Shogun also forms the basis for the M256 King Oni heavy self-propelled artillery vehicle.
Aerospace Craft[]
The CV-77K Super Pelican tactical and CV-220 Albatross strategic dropships are the primary transport craft of the SOS Imperial Marine Corps; their respective gunship derivatives, the AV-77K Super Stinger and AV-220 Shadow, provide valuable close air support for the ground forces. The primary utility and observation craft of the Marines are the V-25 Merlin and V-144 Kestrel families; the attack variant of the Merlin was later developed into the AV-26 Griffon heavy attack gunship. Even with the adoption of the AV-26, the MQ-29 Suzumebachi UCAV still remains the primary attack gunship of the SOS Imperial Armed Forces.
The primary aerospace fighters of the SOS Imperial Marine Corps are the SF-20 Kusanagi and SF-22 Yatagarasu; large numbers of these craft were passed on to the Marine Corps when the SF-26 Messiah and SF-28 Demon were first introduced into the SOS Imperial Navy. The Marines' primary aerospace bomber is the SB-6 Tiger, the predecessor of the SB-7 King Tiger currently in SOS Imperial Navy service; the SB-6 is often used to supplant the Marines' already considerable ground attack capabilities.
Space Transport[]
While the SOS Imperial Marine Corps can usually rely on the SOS Imperial Navy for transport, the Lisa Ann Beley class light assault ships currently in service are ultimately limited in their ability to ferry large numbers of soldiers. The Marines do maintain their own fleets of large troop ships, though these ships have extremely limited combat abilities in general and cannot be counted on to survive against dedicated warships or provide meaningful orbital support; until the Ushijima class heavy assault ships start to arrive in service with the SOS Imperial Navy, the Marines will have to continue to rely on their existing troop ships for large-scale movements.