This article contains historical information regarding the early use of special forces in the Star Army of Yamatai prior to YE 43

War in the Kikyo Sector always changes. The days of million-ship fleets and unimaginable swarms of power armored Nekovalkyrja charging across the freefall battlescape above Yamataian and Nepleslian worlds is a lingering relic of the Empire's glory days fighting the Elysians, Mishhuvurthyar, and other foes from across time and space. Today, the Star Army maintains its fleets and Legions in all of their terrifying glory, but has also evolved to include more specialized units and commands. The following information is an outline of the named infantry-style special operations units currently active in the Star Army of Yamatai.

Yamatai's special forces are organized around the Special Operations Fire Team at their core. While there are several variations of the SOFT doctrinal basis, and there exist some units that do not specifically follow the formula, the Star Army crafted this unit as an elegant and effective basis around which to conduct precision operations. A SOFT's five elite operators and their support staff can be loosed upon Yamatai's enemies as an autonomous unit, be further specialized into myriad mission profiles, and even assigned to work together in larger ad-hoc groupings when operational needs necessitate the deployment of more than one fire team.

But the Special Operations Fire Team isn't the end-all of Star Army Special Operations. From sleek assassins to irregular partisans, Yamatai has employed almost every variation of specialized soldier imaginable — and still does.

Led by Ketsurui Yui herself, Star Army Command is the Star Army's nerve center. It oversees the entirety of Yamatai's military might and ensures the Empire's defense continues to function at the highest possible level of readiness. The special troops employed by Command are at the cutting edge of the Star Army's combat capability, ready to fight anywhere and everywhere Yamatai needs them at a moment's notice.

Main article: Special Operations Fire Team

Those fire teams that fall under the direction of Star Army Command represent the best soldiers that Yamatai has to offer. Primarily drawn from the Uchuugun and Rikugun's most veteran infantry ranks, these operators are second-to-none when it comes to armed combat. They are given tremendous leeway in the pursuit of their assigned objective, and can be found undertaking the Star Army's most strategically important missions. In essence, Star Army Command's Special Operations section is made up of compartmentalized five-soldier armies often tasked with such orders as the infiltration and sabotage of enemy installations, the elimination of key enemy personnel, trans-atmospheric operations, or the securing of an enemy's flagship. These units are commonly assigned to missions in support of the Legions and the Star Army's space forces.

Fire teams are given non-sequential three number designations (e.g. SOFT 831, SOFT 208).

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to DEVGRU, Delta Force, and the SAS.

SAINT's operatives in the field have been conducting what are today considered special operations since the service's inception. During the Second Mishhuvurthyar War, informally organized teams of operatives were often tasked to fight behind enemy lines on hostile, occupied worlds to sow disarray and confusion among the Mishhuvurthyar's ranks, and were the precursor to the more organized black operations outfits that exist today. While SAINT field operations represent the smallest and most secretive section of the Star Army's clandestine warriors, the myths and misinformation surrounding their missions make them among the most feared soldiers in the sector.

Main articles: Star Army Intelligence Operative, SAINT Strategic Initiatives Network

These individual agents form the backbone of SAINT's intelligence gathering apparatus in the field. Part analyst, part spy, and part infantryman, SAINT operatives are highly trained shadow soldiers who are entirely self-sufficient and capable of completing their mission entirely alone and without the materiel support of the Star Army itself. Those operatives assigned to ships function similarly to power armor-qualified intelligence analysts. Others are placed in deep cover positions with orders to gather information from within enemy organizations or eliminate key individuals, or perhaps are ordered to acquire technological intelligence from corporations that aren't completely forthright with Yamatai. When assigned to the Rikugun, operatives usually venture out alone on long range reconnaissance and surveillance missions in support of the Legion to which they are attached.

Out-of-character parallels can be seen in the acts of Espionage and Assassination.

Main articles: Special Operations Fire Team, SAINT Strategic Initiatives Network

The Tokubetsuna Tenkai-Ryoku¹⁾ are Special Operations Fire Teams directly organized by SAINT for support of intelligence gathering operations. Functionally similar to Star Army Command's teams, members of the Tokutenku are selected from SAINT's pool of experienced field operatives rather than Star Army Infantry. While they perform missions similar to those undertaken by regular SOFTs, the nature of intelligence work can take them far away from the front lines of a conflict — and usually deep within enemy territory.

Special Deployment Force teams are designated within SAINT as a “deployment,” followed by a unique nickname (e.g. Deployment Kirin).

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to DEVGRU, Delta Force, and the SAS.

Main articles: Special Operations Fire Team, SAINT RISE

Alert Emergency Group—Intelligence Service teams are maintained by SAINT exclusively for the purpose of securing important persons and items on an immediate basis. They follow the SOFT doctrine but individual operators are all trained in medical first aid and hazardous materials handling procedures. AEGIS teams are held in reserve and are exclusively used to extract SAINT operatives and other important personnel trapped behind enemy lines, as well as to secure any materiel deemed too dangerous or sensitive to be safely handled by other soldiers.

AEGIS teams are given non-sequential two number designations, similar to standard SOFT nomenclature (e.g. AEGIS 21, AEGIS 99).

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to USAF Pararescue, Federal Protective Forces.

Main articles: Special Personnel Projects, SAINT Strategic Initiatives Network

Some regular Star Army units are given Special Personnel Project status in order to more closely integrate with SAINT operations by affording them higher security clearances and a more direct chain of command to the Empire's intelligence apparatus. Effectively, SPP-designated units and individuals become temporary SAINT operatives who report to an SPP handler for a specific intelligence-oriented mission. SPP status has been used for a myriad of missions in the past, but is most commonly associated with the organization of military irregulars.

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to certain functions of the CIA Special Activities Center.

The Star Army's planetside infantry Legions are held to the same high standard of training and troop equipment that all of the Empire's military is known for. Some SOFTs from Star Army Command work almost exclusively in pursuit of objectives supporting Rikugun operations. Additionally, the Rikugun has been known to employ some organic specialized forces within the Legions.

Main article: Star Army Giretsu Century

Rikugun soldiers who graduate the Star Army School of Advanced Infantry Combat have the option of joining a Century comprised entirely of their Giretsu comrades. These highly trained commandos provide Legion commanders with an organic company-sized unit that can perform specialized tasks in concert with regular Rikugun units. The quick deployment capability of Giretsu centuries make them ideal for undertaking direct action raids such as reconnaissance-in-force missions and the recovery or reinforcement of surrounded Star Army personnel.

At the end of the Kuvexian War, some Giretsu Century platoons from the 75th Legion re-organized into Special Operations Fire Teams²⁾ for the Battle Of Glimmergold. These Giretsu SOFTs were given sequential four number designations beginning in 75 (e.g. SOFT 7501, SOFT 7510).

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to the U.S. Army Rangers' 75th Ranger Regiment.

Yamatai's fleet-based “Space Army” is perhaps its most well known, longest lived, and iconic branch of military service. In itself, the Star Army's force of shipboard Mindy Power Armor soldiers are an elite fighting organization that inspires respect in the hearts of allies while striking fear in the minds of foes.

Main article: Special Operations Fire Team

Special Operations Fire Team status is sometimes awarded power armor teams aboard Star Army warships considered elite by Star Army Command. These SOFTs either replace or supplement their ship's standard power armor team, and are frequently formed from Uchuugun soldiers already serving on the ship. The YSS Eucharis and YSS Kaiyō II have both formed fire teams in this manner.

Shipboard fire teams are given three number designations based on their ship's Imperial Registry Number (IRN) (e.g. SOFT 408, SOFT 501).

Teisatsu soldiers are part of the Star Army's most recently created corps. These commandos are trained to scout, harass, sabotage, and raid enemy positions along fronts ahead of regular Star Army infantry formations. They tend to operate independently from regular logistical support.

Main articles: Star Army Reconnaissance, ranger

The four Ranger regiments that make up Star Army Reconnaissance are a collection of light infantry formations that, in concert, are intended to surveil the disposition of enemy forces, establish operational capabilities within a region, and act upon their gathered information in short order. As a corps, the Rangers operate semi-autonomously at the front lines of Yamatai's wars to watch and harass the enemy. When deployed as an independent scouting force planetside, they have a tendency to eschew power armor and operate as foot infantry because of a belief that power armor are less stealthy, though they defer to Mindy and Daisy use when directly attached to Uchuugun and Rikugun units.

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to USMC Force Reconnaissance, non-DEVGRU U.S. Navy SEAL Teams.

The Star Army has operated several units throughout its history that can easily be considered precursors to special operations as they exist today.

The Ninth Fleet was formed prior to the creation of the Rikugun and its Legions, and operated as a planetary invasion and counter-insurgency fleet with a large number of power armor soldiers functioning as naval infantry during the Second Mishhuvurthyar War. Also formed before the creation of the Rikugun, the Fifth Fleet and its Daisy-clad army was once considered “Yamatai's premier ground-combat force.”

SAINT sent groups of operatives called “Strategic Operations Battalions” behind enemy lines to fight a guerrilla war against the Mishhu during the Second Mishhu War.

The YSS Senbu, a deep space repair ship assigned to search and rescue operations, organized Pride Wing as an elite Mindy squadron after the First Mishhuvurthyar War.

Just after the Second Mishhu War, the Tenth Fleet's Task Force Lantern contained an outfit of special forces soldiers hand-picked by the fleet's admiral called the “Ryuusei.”

Black Spiral, a sometimes-traitorous SAINT unit, operated non-armored fire teams in the past.

Main article: 1SF Ketsurui Samurai Detachment

There exists a squadron of five Plumeria-class Gunships within the First Fleet (formerly part of the pre-YE 41 First Expeditionary Fleet) crewed entirely by Ketsurui Samurai. Trained in the way of the blade, NSP, and power armor, these paragon warriors are specifically tasked with the protection of Ketsurui Yui and her family. Samurai in Star Army service are among Yamatai's oldest special forces troops, and, prior to the scaling back of their integration with the Star Army, were sometimes used as elite shock troops. Ketsurui Samurai are the only individuals authorized to use the Sarah M7 Samurai Power Armor.

Out-of-character parallels can be drawn to the Praetorian Guard.

raz created this article on 2019/10/15 23:47.

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