Taurian Defense Force

The well-organized and well-trained Taurian Defense Force (TDF) is arranged along the principles of 19th-century Napoleonic armies. A total of twelve BattleMech regiments are grouped into four separate operations corps: The First, Second, Third, and Taurian Guard Corps. Naval elements are attached directly to Corps Commanders, with each fleet divided further into two demi- squadrons each. There is also the Concord Constabulary, a paramilitary force normally used for internal security purposes, but which can be mobilized in time of war. Overall, the TDF is a highly motivated force of professional soldiery supported by a variety of heavy industries.

Uniforms

The traditional dress uniform of the Concord military is a red tunic with silver buttons (gold for officers), black trousers, and black lapels. Distinctions between branches are denoted by the colors of oversized berets or field caps: dark green for infantry light green for armor, brown for BattleMech, sky blue for navy, and light gray for all support services. In the field, troops wear a standard dull-red or burgundy fatigue uniform with rank insignia on their uniform lapels. Designs for personal gear such as neurohelmets and flight gear have been borrowed from Liao and Davion models, with slight modifications from unit to unit.

Dress uniforms within the TDF correspond to standard uniform styles, with silver sashes and white gloves for all enlisted ranks and gold sashes and white gloves for officers. Marshals of the Concord are further denoted by gold lanyards on both shoulders.

Ranks

Ranks within the TDF are organized along a six-level tier for both officers and enlisted personnel. Individual titles draw heavily upon the influence of French and English armed forces of the 18th century.

Enlisted Ranks:

The six enlisted ranks are Recruit, Corporal, Section Leader, Force Sergeant, Lance Sergeant, and Battalion Chief-Sergeant.

Recruit:

By Concord-wide law, all individuals, male and female, are required at age 18 to join the TDF. Planetary geographical districts (cantons) assemble individuals into provisional training battalions. Each Recruit receives 18 weeks of basic training before being assigned to a unit in the field. A black silhouette denoting one point of a five-pointed star signifies Recruits. All rank silhouettes are black to commemorate those who have died to defend the Taurian systems.

Corporal:

In infantry formations, Corporals serve as maniple leaders, one maniple consisting of five troopers, with two maniples to a squad. In armor units, Corporals are tank commanders. In all other services, the rank denotes a junior position involving one or more specialist positions. Two points of a five-pointed star denote the Corporal, who wears his insignia on his left lapel.

Section Leader:

Section Leaders in the TDF infantry are squad commanders, while in Taurian armor units, they command a maniple of two armored fighting vehicles (three maniples to a lance). In all other services, the rank denotes senior specialist positions. Section Leaders wear three points of a five-pointed star.

Force Sergeant:

A Force Sergeant commands a platoon of 25 men (two squads). In TDF armor units, a Force Sergeant commands an armor lance of three maniples (six vehicles). This rank is also used to denote junior AeroSpace Pilots in the Taurian AeroSpace Arm. Four points of a five-pointed star denote the Force Sergeant.

Lance Sergeant:

A Lance Sergeant serves as assistant platoon leader to a Cornet officer. In armor units, he acts as assistant company commander to a Sub-Altern. In the AeroSpace Arm, Lance Sergeants are pilots in charge of an air lance. A five-pointed star on the lapel denotes this rank.

Battalion Chief-Sergeant/Air Master:

Battalion Chief-Sergeants are the senior battalion NCOs in all Taurian ground units. The equivalent rank of Air Master is used in the AeroSpace Arm to denote junior flight commanders controlling two air lances. The insignia for both ranks is a five-pointed star surrounded by laurel leaves

Officer Ranks:

The six commissioned ranks are Cornet, Subaltern, Brigadier, Colonel, Comptroller, and Marshal.

Cornet:

The Cornet is the lowest-ranking junior officer in the TDF. Cornets serving in ground units typically act as company commanders. Aboard ship, they are assistant department heads, and in the AeroSpace Arm, they command a wing of two air lances. In BattleMech units, Cornets serve as MechWarriors. A crescent moon on the lapel denotes the Cornet.

Subaltern/AirMaster, Junior Grade:

Subalterns are battalion commanders in the Taurian ground forces and assistant commanders of air divisions (consisting of two wings of four lances each) in the AeroSpace Arm. In BattleMech units, Subalterns command lances of four BattleMechs. Air Masters, junior grade, act as department heads aboard naval vessels. Subalterns wear two crescent moons, face to face.

Brigadier/Air Master, Senior Grade:

Brigadiers act as regimental executive officers. Often, they lead commands of four or more companies into battle, depending on assigned mission tasks. Senior grade Air Masters command an aerospace corps consisting of three aerospace wings. The insignia for both ranks is four crescent moons, two facing right and two facing left.

Colonel/Space Master:

A Colonel is a senior regimental commander. Space Masters act as ship captains aboard Taurian naval vessels. All officers of this rank wear a full moon on each lapel.

Comptroller/Commodore:

A purely organizational rank, the Comptroller belongs to senior command and planning staff found at the corps level. In certain circumstances, a Comptroller may be delegated to command a regiment or part of a regiment for special missions. Commodores command demi-squadrons, which are a collection of naval vessels assembled according to the dictates of specific mission requirements. A black eagle on each lapel denotes both ranks.

Marshal:

At present, there are five Marshals in the Concord military, one commanding each corps, and one Senior Marshal, a hereditary rank given to the Protector in his role as Commander-in-Chief. Two oak leaves denote a corps commander, and three oak leaves denote the Senior Marshal.

Structure of the TDF

The following is a brief description of the major divisions of the Taurian Defense Force.

Concord Army:

The Concord Army consists of twelve BattleMech regiments (30 battalions). Nine are line units, and three are mercenary regiments with long-term contracts. Oriented toward lances of light-to-medium BattleMechs, Taurian units are similar in composition to their counterparts in the Successor States. Units are routinely trained as Special Task Groups. In the first days of an invasion, battalions not engaged with enemy forces would be earmarked for special STG strike missions, as local counterattack teams or as deep-space raiders directed at vulnerable communication and supply points. The flexibility of this military response remains to be seen, especially as more and more Taurian units are being committed to permanent garrisons each year.

Concord Navy:

The Concord Navy currently consists of 117 DropShips and JumpShips divided into four fleets, each fleet being assigned to a corps front commander. Taurian naval personnel are typically long-term volunteers, with officers serving from about four to seven years. In time of war, the Navy is expected to serve as the first line of defense against any aggressor. In a departure from Reunification War doctrine, all four fleet components, including that of the Taurian Guard Corps, are expected to engage the enemy as far forward as possible, sacrificing themselves to blunt the enemy's invasion as far from the Hyades Cluster as possible. Few vessels would be retained to defend the Taurian home worlds.

AeroSpace Arm:

Though staffed, like its naval counterpart, with long-term professionals, the AeroSpace Arm remains the weakest of three principal military branches. A general lack of equipment and experience against modern combat tactics leaves this organization at a distinct disadvantage against its Inner Sphere counterparts. As a result, the AeroSpace Arm concentrates on ground-support roles. In recent years, the Concord has brought in advisers from the Outworlds Alliance to help modernize the arm, though it may be years before the Taurians are on par with their potential opponents.

Medical Division:

The Medical Division is concerned with the recovery and rehabilitation of wounded personnel in the field. At present, the medical service available to the average Concord soldier is comparable to that of the Inner Sphere. Emphasis is placed on the quick retrieval of wounded personnel close to the forward edge of battle, and the division is fully capable of deploying emergency medical and surgical support stations via support craft at a moment's notice.

Transport and Service Division:

The Transport and Services Division is responsible for the transportation of men and material to battle areas. In addition, it can provide recovery and repair of battle-damaged craft and machines, as well as transport reserves capable of maintaining the integrity of units in the field. Except for those vessels directly assigned to specific regiments, military DropShips and JumpShips are under the control of this division.

Administrative Corps:

The Administrative Corps is responsible for all matters pertaining to personnel and administrative functions in the armed forces, including disbursement of funds, recordkeeping, promotion review boards, and the acquisition and management of mercenary units.

Propaganda Division:

With the task of maintaining good morale within the armed services, the Propaganda Division is an independent arm of government that disseminates information regarding the positive aspects of Concord life and discounts rumors instigated by enemy agents.

Special Forces

The following summarizes the three wings of TDF Special Forces: the Concord Constabulary, the Taurian ASF, and the Noble Family Regiments.

Concord Costabulary:

The Concord Constabulary is a dual-function local defense force, charged with intelligence-gathering and internal security operations. It is also a source of conventionally armed troops in time of war, when each Taurian planetary system reverts to martial law under the control of the Constabulary. The military potential of the Constabulary is two to six battalions of conventional troops (600 men each) available for active duty on each Taurian world.

In addition, the Constabulary retains the services of a special Engineer Company (125 men) on each planet outside the Hyades Cluster. These individuals are charged with maintaining planetary defenses and fortifications. All Constabulary units also maintain at least one company of armor in the capital of each inhabited world.

Taurian SASF:

The Taurian Special Asteroid Support Force is a body of five thousand soldiers and naval personnel trained on Zero-g defense platforms throughout the Hyades Cluster asteroid belt, from which they can attack invading forces. As the survival potential of forces in combat is low, the Taurian SASF is a voluntary force of individuals motivated by the highest degree of patriotism.

Noble Family Regiments:

In the event of war, the Taurian aristocracy is expected to raise and equip local defense regiments at their own expense. The number and quality of these "Home Guards" cannot be estimated at this time, but their strength in the Reunification War suggests the possibility of from one to two dozen such units, ranging from 1,000 to 3,000 conventional troops.

Taurian Military Academies

Alone of all the Periphery states, the Taurian Concordat maintains large military training academies. At present, there is one academy for each major combat branch: the Army, Navy, and AeroSpace Arms. The army training academy is the Taurian Ecole Militaire, located on Taurus. The Taurian Naval Institute and the Concord AeroSpace Flight School are located on New Vandenburg and Samantha, respectively. Each has well-developed training programs for both NCOs and officers and can accommodate upward of five hundred personnel.

Strengths and Weaknesses

On the whole, the Taurian military consists of highly trained and well-motivated individuals. It nevertheless suffers from several debilitating factors. The shrunken size of the Concord, in comparison with its original holdings in the 2500s, means that in any full-scale war, the Taurians will be unable to trade space for time as they did in the Reunification War. Within the first few months of fighting, the Taurians can expect to lose several key planetary systems, after which they will be forced into either a desperate counterattack or a withdrawal into the Hyades Cluster. Many of the Taurians' key industrial centers are located outside the Hyades zone, making them prime targets of occupation. The protection of these manufacturing centers forces the Taurians to commit most of their battalions to a relatively static role.