Military of the Lutoborsk
| Military of the Lutoborsk | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 1636? |
| Current form | 1943 |
| Leadership | |
| Vozhd | Vladibor XII |
| Manpower | |
| Active personnel | 1 million |
| Reserve personnel | 1 million |
The Military of the Lutoborsk consists of a multitude of forces dedicated in principle to the defence of the Banner of the Wide North (or at least its Banner-State), and the Vozhd of Lutoborsk. They are coordinated by a Harmonisation of Forces Board, and corresponding local Boards closely integrate forces from different services and formations at a theatrical and operational level.
Constitution
The present organisation of military forces was a product of the Confection of 1988, which aimed to drastically streamline the bloated army from the times of the Holay War for the sake of imperial fiscal accountability and austerity. Despite common fears of warlordism among imperialists, imperial and confederate armies regularly and effectively coordinate, as seen during the Rastovid War. With the officer corps being produced by a united system of military academies, the loyalty of the most well-equipped and effective troops to the empire (if not exactly particular leading figures) is not in doubt; many of the larger confederate armies seem to be merely the result of handing out out maintenance responsibilities, rather than really offering the privilege of a private army.
Somewhat pertinent to interpreting the diffuse character of the Lutoborian military — not just practically as an array of armies, but conceptually as encompassing matters as 'civil' or 'civilian' as 'private' gun ownership — is the synonymy in the Lutoborian language of the traditional word for army, viysko, for 'state' (namely, the Flank State, Viysko Dvoh Storony or literally in context 'Army [consisting] of Two Flanks', that constituted the Aborovid Confederacy). A political community in northeastern Joriscia is inextricable from its constitution through armed force, necessary to pursue security and interests without as much as defend rights within, and the imperial nature of the modern Lutoborian polity thus necessitates distinct ways of using force being available to every level and section of society. The all-reaching conception of political authority in Vaestism further necessitates defining and justifying arms-bearing in relation to the polity itself.
Imperial household troops
Household troops are all organised and funded by the Lutoborian Imperial Household, and answer first to central authorities in their capacity as delegates of the vozhd.
Confederate troops
Politically, 'confederates' refer to any army primarily organised by a subsidiary of the state holding an imperial usufruct and other patents. In terms of what organisations handle such duties, they are either realms or estates. In terms of the actual process of organisation and the expected use of confederates there are three main categories: reserves for the imperial army, funded federally by the Lutoborian Court in the case of realms but locally in the case of estates; units exclusively under realm authority but mostly bound to a conventional Vesnite polity's organic defensive and security duties, primarily locally funded; and truly 'private armies' employed at the organiser's discretion, though the most meaningful examples of them typically serve as Lutoborian colonial proxies.
School troops
As local governments, provincial schools are entitled to organising their own forces, and requesting funds from imperial or realm governments to do so. These mainly serve to train reservists or general civilian readiness, and act as either civil defence or paramilitarised police.
Hunter-privateers and civilian armaments
Ownership and operation of weapons separate from the aforementioned conventional arms of the Vaestic state is sanctioned through the legal device of 'hunting-privateering'. 'Hunting' designates the intuitive, apolitical use of equipment for the titular activity and 'hobbyist' purposes, while 'privateering' refers to the expectation that subjects of the Lutoborian Banner will organically act in its interest. This right is not granted through permits or usufructs, but only rescinded either punitively or preemptively on a case-by-case basis through the assessments of character judgement. Hunting, shooting, gunsmithing, and wargaming clubs are treated as ephemeral and insubstantial, and are not surveiled or regulated at all; the relationship of 'privateering' thus serves as another creative interpretation of demediatisation as a Vaestopolitical principle.
Modern firearms, and surplus or obsolete military equipment, are widely available in the Lutoborsk alongside more traditional but now largely ceremonial weapons. Guns are treated as equal in importance to traditional swords or other items as a marker of status and dignity for both nobles and commoners. Loadout optimisation and customisation occupies much time and effort from both demographics.
Against common and stereotypical fears of aristocratic warlordism, most domestic conflicts arise from the notoriously combative commoner citizenry instead. Being commonly self-organised and self-equipped, hunter-privateers frequently involve themselves in protests of various sorts in the fractious and shady Lutoborian political environment to uphold their rights. This also embroils the militias which they overwhelmingly staff, and the lower-grade confederate armies that recruit or co-opt them; the professional soldiery, even under independent confederate management, are quite depoliticised in contrast. While disciplining them consumes much effort from authorities and other security forces, and imperialist politicians regularly question their usefulness, these 'freemen' remain regarded as the backbone of the Banner's defence for cultural, fiscal, and political reasons.
Units
For cultural reasons a wide variety of units are known as 'Regiments' (polk), which connote independence and history. Since 1990 they are mainly distinguished by the category of their namesake, though many exceptions exist which are more easily identified by their reputation. Division-sized 'Great Regiments' mainly named for abstract concepts, characters, or major historical figures deploy brigade-sized 'Name Regiments' named for other historical figures. Those are built from, or fight alongside, 'Place Regiments', older and more permanent regiments, brigades, and battalions, or independent support units, that are identified by toponyms. The administrative sources of a Great Regiment's subordinate Name and Place Regiments determine if they are exclusively 'Household', 'Confederate', or 'Mixed'. Personnel are also identified with administrative or ceremonial columns. 'Marching regiments' may be formed as ad hoc battlegroups.
Major active ground units (2022)
Southern Command 'Palace'
- 1st Banner-Shrine Guards Regiment (Household) - Zhytomir
- Maneuver units named for Lutoborian Vesnite heroes before the end of the War of the Shackles
- 5th Emperor's Banner-Guard Regiment (Mixed) - Undugsk
- Primarily composed of Name- and Place-Regiments claiming origins with the Agamari Silver Columns; also known as the 'Agar/Pièche Regiment'
- 10th Night Assault Regiment 'Sceptics' (Confederate) - Kosiv
- 15th Sanguine Regiment 'Lordship' (Mixed) - Plysove
- Titled for suffering 95% casualties defending Zhytomir during the 1947–49 Doyotian War
- 17th 'Anabbines' Regiment (Confederate) - Anjir
- 59th Regiment 'Librarian' (Confederate) - Kosiv
- Logistical command for reservist and militia mobilisation
- 70th Protologue of Undugsk's Regiment 'Flower Spirit' (Confederate) - Uman
- Logistical command for reservist and militia mobilisation
Northern Command 'Ship'
- 9th Grave of Shuhzheh's Extreme Conditions Regiment 'Power' (Confederate) - Dagasahyn
- 22nd Prince of Dengograd's Regiment 'Purifier' (Confederate) - Zhehchu
- 88th Protologue of Foshky's Regiment 'Falconeer' (Confederate) - Kalgye
- Logistical command for reservist and militia mobilisation
Western Command 'School'
- 3rd Emperor's Banner-Guard Regiment (Mixed) - Velykyy Zamok
- Maneuver units named for Lutoborian heroes of the Tardy War era (1661–1831)
- 19th Okrainy Voivode's Regiment 'Drunkard' (Confederate) - Joghtepa
- 24th Prince of Mazyr's Regiment 'Recorder' (Confederate) - Vydybor
Rapid Deployment Command 'Circuit'
- 2nd Fast Strike Regiment 'Protoacolyte' (Household) - Dengograd
- Airborne infantry division
- 4th Fast Strike Regiment 'Thaumaturge' (Household) - Hremel
- Airborne infantry division
- 16th Night Assault Regiment (Household) - Kothyn
- Airborne special operations command. Besides teams and task forces designated for counter-terrorism and independent specialised missions, active Name-Regiments of light infantry employed as part of conventional operations are regularly attached to the Southern, Northern, and Western Commands:
- 161 Regiment 'Hishor Sarmoukhya' - Zhytomir
- 165 Regiment 'Shesteen Krelemevsky' - Undugsk
- 1608 Regiment 'Chistin Druh-Vozhdya' - Velykyy Zamok
- 1610 Regiment 'Zakon Kravchuk' - Dengograd
- 49th Regiment (Confederate) - Hremel
- Logistical command and liaison for deploying specialised confederate forces
Miscellaneous
Strategic Command
- Metacosmic Sorcery Command 'Bejewelled Wings'
- Operates tactical nuclear weaponry
- Metacosmic Sorcery Command 'Great Skies'
- Operates strategic nuclear weaponry
- 7th Regiment 'Playwright'
- Independent reconnaissance-oriented special operations unit