Military-overview;The Ramset military is a land-air focused service, though it has a small navy, this force is attached under army control. They make use of heavy armors, the traditional shield, and light, close-range weaponry, with long-range support from artillery or sharpshooters. There are holes in this doctrine, for instance, they have no effective mid-range combat weapons. The air force relies heavily on VT technology, and it's larger craft have replaced naval units in the joint force's doctrine. All-over, the Ramset Imperial Defence Force is heavily networked, and support elements play a large role in any military actions.
branches;The Ramset military is split up into two main forces. Aerospace, and Surface. Each of these is divided further
SurCom;
Ordinators (infantry, including support infantry)
Shieldbearers (ground logistics)
Cavalry (armoured support)
Bombadiers (Artillery support)
AeroCom;
Fleet Command (Airfleet operations)
Fighter Command (fighter and gunship operations)
Orbital (government space exploration and utilisation)
Merchantmen (airborne logistics and transport)
The force assignment between the main forces is 55/45, in Surface's favour.
Manpower;Ramsetian military manpower varies between 2-4% of the total national population, the military joint command stresses the importance of training, and as such, training periods are on average, a week or two longer than most comparable militaries. The high percentage of population in the military, by comparison to other nations is also accounted for by the fact that the military acts as a joint military-police force, ensuring law and order, and trained in police actuions as well as military.
Alliances;Ramsetia is hesitant to enter into alliances, although many joint-training and defensive aid treaties and non-aggression pacts have been happily signed.
Equipment;The equipment used by the Ramset Ordinators is focused around a defensive posture. It involves a Ballistic shield rated to reliably (16 rounds of 20 in a three-inch diameter target) repel 7.62mm FMJ fired from 400m. Alongside this is the current Service weapon. Generally a SMG or light assault rifle. These are supported at panic ranges and CQB by a special class of weapon largely endemic to Ramsetia; The Flak Rifle.
Flak rifles are shotgun-like weapons that utilise shaped, fragmenting charges similar to anti-aircraft flak. roughly octagonal in shape, to allow for more corners in the resulting blast, the Flak shells operate on similar principles to a fragmentation grenade, though in this case, they are detonated in the breech of the rifle, showering an opponent with white-hot shrapnel. Alternatively, there are delayed-fuse rounds which function much like an airburst frag grenade, and other variations on similar rounds.
Ordinators themselves use one of these weapons, supporting infantry groups are equipped with a variety of other arms, from side-loading 7.62mm LMGs for heavy automatic weapon support, through to anti-materiel and sniper rifles in sniper support elements.
Anti-tank firepower at a squad level is provided by a 23mm recoilless rifle, one to a squad, with ammunition spread through the group.
Ramset infantry armour is generally of Class IV protection, featuring prominent shoulder guards and thick pads of a mixture of metal and soft protective elements. Vehicle crews wear a smaller and thinner vest, rated for class II protection.
Vehicles;Ramsetia's lack of local land vehicle construction has required our military to seek for vehicles from abroad, finding what they can, which our industry will then modify to suit our own doctrine and needs.
Infantry Mobility is provided by two lines of vehicles;
The
Bushmaster IMV (Infantry Mobility vehicle), is the current city-use transport, but is capable in all terrains, from desert through to jungle. A turbocharged Diesel engine provides power to all four wheels, and double wishbone suspension keeps the vehicle from becoming trapped. It has space to comfortably fit 10 soldiers and equipment, and provides air conditioning, cooled water reservoir, and communications and computer services. A four-seater variant with an open traybed back is used for combat reconnaissance
they are joined by modified
BMP-3s, bulky and tank-like constructs sealed against NBC warfare. Ramsetian BMP-3s lack the turret and assosciated weapons, in favour of two 7.62mm machine guns on hatches, and two 10mm machineguns on sidemounts, operated by the infantry within. This gives the BMP more anti-infantry firepower, and a lower profile, making it less of a target to enemy tanks
Ramsetia only has two tanks, only one of which is usable on offense. The 'Strider' LT/08/G2. Assembled within Ramsetia, built from assorted parts that are imported from all over the NS world. It is powered by a 12-cylinder diesel engine. A single off-center turret armed with a 122mm autoloading main gun with a rifled barrel provides most offensive punch, while a multi-use missile system on the back of the turret adds further anti-air, and anti-hard target capabilities. a co-axial 7.62 machinegun and a remote-operated identical weapon provide anti-infantry support.
The 'Stalker' HT/02/G6 is the current defensive armour of the RIDF. It's a massive construct, bulky heavy armour, sloped front due to the age of the original design. The engine and transmission make up the front of the vehicle, adding to crew survivability. A 149mm rifled main gun with an autoloader, and a 23mm autocannon on a secondary turret allow for engagement of multiple had targets at once. Taking many design cues from the Merkeva, the Stalker is capable of carrying two additional RIDF personnel, often corpsemen, shieldbearers, or specialist teams.
Logistics support is carried out by 'copperhead'-variant Bushmasters. An unarmed, tray-back variant of our standard Infantry Mobility Vehicle. A welded monocoque body atop double wishbone suspension, with several suvivability equipment options. Unlike the standard model, Ramsetian Copperheads are six-wheeled, with all three axles providing drive power.
For heavier support, like the movement of building materials, other vehicles, or simply larger loads, the
HEMTT is used, this eight-wheeler is capable if transporting more than it's share, and has proven adept at use in deserts and open plains alike. However, it is a little too large for inner-city or dense terrain use. Specially modified HEMTTs are utilised as portable launchpads for VT gunships.
Aircraft;Ramset Air forces utilise high-tech aircraft, favouring agility over stealth technology, the preference being to evading a launched missile rather than defending the craft from being locked onto. The most iconic Ramset air vehicle is the 'SSx' series of
gunships, featuring mobile Vectored Thrust turbines mounted along the sides of the craft, enabling a higher degree of speed and anti-air capability, while maintaining the manoeuvrability of a standard helicopter.
Alongside such vehicles are several fighter craft which followed along the same genesis as the Harrier JumpJet, the standard
strike fighter equipped to aircarriers is perhaps the greatest example, featuring a rotational mount for the entire turbine of each engine.
Due to a particularly intense focus on aircraft development, the ramset navy could be considered a division of the air force, made up of the assorted airborne capitol ships that Ramsetia will field in navy-like fleets. Small and agile 'blastboats' which feature as the local equivalent of a submarine, up to lumbering behemoths of aircraft carriers, sporting whole wings of fighters for force projection.
Uniforms;Ramset uniforms are often hard-wearing and utilitarian, some particular examples being the class-1 bullet-resistant jumpsuit worn by fighter pilots. The camouflage pattern of the RIDF is termed 'Hybrid Deceptive Camouflage Pattern', and can be most easily described as a hybridisation of amoeba and stair-step camouflage designs. The pallette for this design is easily swap-able, and five or more colours can be achieved with only three dyes, making it cost-effective.
The assorted heavy infantry uniforms, the most prominent and commonly seen. From left to right; Standard uniform in Hyperdiverse, Protection Deployment, Cold Climate in Frostburn, and HazMat in Scorched Earth
Lesser-seen uniforms, including; An Aerocom pilot and airman in 'cloud cover', a Surcom vehicle crewman in 'Saithis', and a Loremaster in hevy armour wearing the gangland urban palette.
Rank Insignia;Rank is marked by a series of small chevrons on the rim of the dress beret, and by similar chevrons marked onto the forehead of any helmets worn. Rank insignia is identical across both services to increase the overall cohesiveness of the RIDF.
Loremasters do not wear rank insignia, and are considered at all times to be a Warrant Officer, though their deployment may be as any non-comissioned rank.