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Preface
Field Manual 35-25-2 provides an overview of Member State and Territorial State militaries. It discusses in general terms the organization of their forces. It does not address the history, tactics or procedures of said militaries unless necessary to clarify or highlight pertinent information. This document is not intended to serve as an Intelligence Estimate. For current and in-depth assessments of Member and Territorial State militaries, refer to your Echelon Ic. Those requiring a refresher on SLDF overview and organization should consult FM 35-25-1.

The intended primary users of this Field Manual are Recruits & Cadets in training, and Members posting to stations in Member and Territorial States

The Proponent of this Field Manual is the Chief of Intelligence Command. Comments and recommendations should be submitted on form DF-A401.9, found here

Introduction
Militaries are not built in a vacuum. Politics, culture, ideology, demography, geography, economics and history all play a role in shaping the size, organization and objectives of any military force.

For these reasons, the various militaries the SLDF interacts with tend to differ from what you have likely come to accept as the norm. The following sections will discuss each Member and Territorial State in turn.

General Observations
Readers will quickly note that the militaries discussed herein tend to diverge from the SLDF baseline in at least one of the following three ways.

Firstly, most deploy far larger numbers of infantry at equivalent echelons. This can usually be explained by technological disparity. The average SLDF 2-man infantry Fire Team packs more sensor and comms technology than most Member and Territorial State platoons, meaning that the SLDF can “do more with less”. On a related note, economic realities for some states mean that infantry will be the backbone of their forces to a greater extent than the SLDF, and may be expected to operate without the full range of support available to the average SLDF Infantry Regiment. Under those circumstances, higher troop strengths become vital.

Secondly, Echelons above the Regiment are often strategic or theoretical in nature. While economics again is sometimes the culprit, politics is also another factor in this difference. Many political rulers tend to be wary of concentrating military force under someone elses command, and therefore discourage this in ways implicit and explicit.

Thirdly, Combined Arms Operations below Brigade-equivalent Levels tend to be rare. SLDF members are aware of how difficult it is to operate in concert with the various arms, and consequently the heavy amount of training, both field and simulated that is devoted to getting this right. This training is costly, and for that reason alone many Member and Territorial States cannot carry this out as much as they would like. Also, for political reasons, some State rulers do not necessarily want strong relationships to form between units.

Finally, it goes without saying that all militaries will be organized to some degree based on local needs, and this in itself will produce variations from the baseline. The SLDF is not immune from this.

We are waiting.

Wait...
an Ice Hellion waiting for something? Someone call the doctor, quick. 

Armed Forces of the Federated Suns (AFFS)

The AFFS is a military in transition. Formerly the closest in organizational structure and doctrine to the SLDF of all the House Militaries, the AFFS has radically altered its core structures over the past 10 years to make combined arms operations the norm rather than the exception.

Pure units now exist only to Battalion level. Above that, units are combined arms, in various configurations. These are discussed below.

Note that the AFFS does not use the Regiment as an operational echelon. Instead, a grouping of Battalions is a Demi-Brigade. AFFS Regiments follow ancient British Commonwealth practice as meta-units which farm out Battalions to higher formations. For instance, the 11th Avalon Hussars ‘Mech Regiment is comprised of a  number of BattleMech Battalions, of which the 4th, 5th and 6th Battalions serve in the 2nd Avalon Hussars BattleMech Demi-Brigade.

This change has not been without opposition. Many units were renamed, consolidated or disbanded, leading to considerable opposition. In addition, placing ‘Mech Battalions under the command of Infantry and Armor Brigades has provoked a backlash among more traditional MechWarrior officers, some of whom have resigned, taking with them a substantial amount of experience.

BattleMech Organization
Lance        4 BattleMechs
Company    3 Lances (12)
Battalion    3 Companies + Command Lance (40)

At Battalion level and below, AFFS BattleMech organization remains familiar. Battalions are led by a Leftenant-Colonel, with a Major as Executive Officer (Second in Charge, abbreviated 2iC in AFFS parlance). Captains command Companies, and Leftenants lead Lances.

The Battalion Commander has a separate command Lance as they do not have the advanced command consoles available to the SLDF.

AFFS BattleMech formations tend to average out in the Medium weight range, but formations of all weight classes can be found in the AFFS.

Armor Organization
Platoon    4 Vehicles
Company    3 Platoons (12)
Battalion    3 Companies + Command Platoon (40)

Armored vehicle unit organization is identical to that of BattleMechs. Ranking conventions have been adjusted so that most Armor Battalions are now led by Leftenant-Colonels instead of Majors.

Infantry Organization
AFFS infantry broadly falls into 3 sub-groups - Foot Infantry, Mechanized Infantry and Jump Infantry. There are many regional variations that take local conditions into account, such as Motorized Infantry, Alpine troops, Heavy Infantry and Light Infantry.

Foot Infantry
Fire Team    4 Soldiers
Squad        2 Fire Teams (8 )
Platoon    4 Squads + Command Fire Team (36)
Company    3 Platoons (108)
Battalion    3 Companies + Command Platoon (360)

As with Armor Battalions, Infantry Battalion Commanders have become a Leftenant-Colonel slot.

AFFS Infantry organization starts with the Fire Team of 4 soldiers, led by either a senior Corporal or a Sergeant. The Sergeant is also in command of a Squad of two Fire Teams. Both Squads in a Fire Team are usually identically composed in terms of weapons and equipment, but this is not always true.

Four Squads plus a Command Fire Team make up an Infantry Platoon, led by a Leftenant and assisted by a senior Sergeant. Generally, one Squad in each platoon is “Heavy”, consisting of support weapons. Again, there are many variations on this model, and some Platoons may consist solely of Heavy Squads.

Three Platoons comprise a Company, led by a Captain, and finally, three Companies make up a Battalion, which has an attached Command Platoon.

Most Foot Infantry Battalions are found in planetary garrisons.

Mechanized Infantry
Fire Team    4 Soldiers
Squad        2 Fire Teams (8 ) + IFV
Platoon    4 Squads + Command Fire Team (36) + (4 IFV)
Company    3 Platoons (108) + (12 IFV)
Battalion    3 Companies + Command Platoon (360) + (40 IFV)

Mechanized Infantry is typically found in the new combined arms Brigades fielded by the AFFS. Each Squad rides into battle in an IFV, which provides speed, protection and firepower.

Jump Infantry
Fire Team    4 Soldiers
Squad        2 Fire Teams (8 )
Platoon    3 Squads + Command Fire Team (28)
Company    3 Platoons (84)
Battalion    3 Companies + Command Platoon (280)

Except for special operations troops, Jump Infantry are the elite of the AFFS’s ground pounders. Due to the difficulty in training and supplying these forces, they are typically organized with only 3 Squads to the Platoon.

Artillery Organization
Platoon    4 Artillery Pieces
Battery    3 Platoons (12)
Battalion    3 Batteries + Fire Control Battery (36) + (12)

AFFS artillery units are organized almost identically to their SLDF counterparts. One key difference is the attachment of a Fire Control Battery, made up of spotter vehicles and their crews, at the Battalion level rather than at Battery level. The AFFS rationale for doing so seems to revolve around allowing spotter teams to be parcelled out in any combination as needed, and to get them used to working with any Battery in the Battalion.

AeroSpace Craft Organization
Lance        2 Craft
Flight    3 Lances(6)
Squadron    3 Flights + Command Lance (20)

As part of the reorganization of the AFFS, AeroSpace units have been attached at Brigade and Brigade Combat Team (Division) level. In doing so, their unit structure has also been standardized. Lances are led by Leftenants, and Flights by Captains. Squadrons are commanded by Light Commodores.

Most units attached to front-line Combined Arms Brigades consist of AeroSpace Fighters, while planetary garrisons usually have conventional fighters only.

Demi-Brigades
The Demi-Brigade is the cornerstone of the AFFS’s new organizational model. Each is formed around 3 Battalions of one type of unit (for example, BattleMechs), with 2-3 Battalions or Squadrons of supporting units.

Each Brigade is expected to be able to fight integrated, or as a number of semi-independent Reinforced Battalion Groups. Two Demi-Brigades make up a Brigade.

It was hoped that the permanent assignment of disparate Battalions to the same Demi-Brigade would grow combined arms expertise more quickly, and to a certain extent, this has happened. However, due to command inertia, only a few units, such as the Davion Brigade of Guards, are truly proficient in exploiting the advantages of the new organization to its fullest. Some Demi-Brigades have only paid lip service to the concept, while others are still working up. We can therefore expect that combined arms expertise will vary widely across the AFFS for some time to come.

Each Demi-Brigade is commanded by a Colonel drawn from the same community as the base arm, so Armor Brigades will always be commanded by a Colonel from the Armor community.

There are six basic types of Demi-Brigade and two types of Wing (the AeroSpace equivalent)

BattleMech Demi-Brigades consist of 3 BattleMech Battalions, 1 Armor Battalion, 1 Mechanized Infantry Battalion and one Artillery Battalion. It is common to see Armor and Mechanized Infantry attached in Company strength directly to each ‘Mech Battalion.

Armor Demi-Brigades contain 3 Armor Battalions, a BattleMech Battalion, a Mechanized Infantry Battalion and an Artillery Battalion. In a surprising turn of events, it appears that Armor Brigades have fared the best at assimilating the new concept of operations. At the moment, it is estimated that AFFS Armor Brigades are more proficient at combined armed operations than their BattleMech counterparts.

Infantry Demi-Brigades contain 3 Infantry Battalions, one Armor Battalion and an Artillery Battalion. These Brigades form the bulk of planetary garrisons in the Federated Suns. Equipment quality, training and readiness is known to vary widely. It is reported that some garrison Infantry Brigades have not even started training in combined armed operations, while others (chiefly those closer to border areas) have demonstrated surprising competence with the same.

Mechanized Infantry Demi-Brigades consist of 3 Mechanized Infantry Battalions, one BattleMech Battalion, one Armor Battalion and one Artillery Battalion. These Brigades are often assigned to quieter areas, and make up the bulk of the new BCTs.

Jump Infantry Demi-Brigades consist of 3 Jump Infantry Battalions, a BattleMech Battalion and a Troop Transport Squadron. These units are intended to be the AFFS’s Rapid Reaction Force, and at least one independent Jump Infantry Demi-Brigade has been assigned to each PDZ.

Artillery Demi-Brigades combine 3 Artillery Battalions, a Recon Battalion and a Recon Squadron of spotter aircraft to provide a Brigade Combat Team (See below) with many fire options. These units are currently only deployed as part of a BCT. Innovative commanders are reportedly using the recon unit to augment the BCT’s tactical intelligence capabilities.

Air Support Wings consist of 3 AeroSpace Fighter Squadrons, one Transport Squadron, and a Combat Engineer Battalion trained to build and maintain and protect airfields.

Troop Transport Wings reverse the ratio of AeroSpace Fighter to Transport Squadrons in the Wing, but are otherwise organized identically. Their job is to provide tactical airlift.

Brigades
Brigades are usually made up of 2 Demi-Brigades of the same sub-type, with some independent Battalions directly assigned to Brigade HQ. These are intended to be attached to component Demi-Brigades as needed to bolster their capabilities. The type and number of independent Battalions varies widely, though there are generally no more than 2-3 of these.

At the present, the trend is for the independent Battalions to offer capabilities not found in component Demi-Brigades. For example, a Mechanized Infantry Brigade’s Independent Battalions may include a BattleMech Battalion and a Jump Infantry Battalion.

AeroSpace Assets are also included at Brigade level, and are also usually attached as needed to Demi-Brigades. At the moment the usual assignment is one Squadron, but reports seem to indicate that field commanders are pushing for more AeroSpace fighters at this level.

Brigades are commanded by Leftenant Generals.

Brigade Combat Teams
While the AFFS has historically used Division-equivalent units, these have usually been temporary organizations. The new BCTs are meant to be permanent, with their own Headquarters, and commanded by a Major General.

There are 4 types of BCT organization defined by the AFFS.

BattleMech BCT
Consists of 2 BattleMech Brigades, 1 Mechanized Infantry Brigade, 1 Artillery Brigade and 1 Air Support Wing. Few such units exist in the AFFS today outside the Brigade of Guards, chiefly due to lack of BattleMechs under the House Troop numbers limitations.

Armored BCT
Contains 2 Armor Brigades, 1 Mechanized Infantry Brigade, 1 Artillery Brigade and 1 Air Support Wing. The second most common type of BCT, this configuration generally plays two roles - as the iron fist along quieter Periphery borders, or as a second-line back up in the Capellan and Draconis Marches.

Mechanized Infantry BCT
Made up of 2 Mechanized Infantry Brigades, 1 BattleMech Brigade, 1 Artillery Brigade and 1 Air Support Wing, this is the most common BCT configuration in the AFFS, making up well over half the front line BCTs.

Jump Infantry BCT
Comprising 2 Jump Infantry Brigades, 1 BattleMech Brigade, 2 Air Support Wings and a Transport Wing, this is the rarest BCT formation in the AFFS. Just ten exist.

Interesting take on that organisational breakdown.

If the Demi-Brigade is the new cornerstone of the AFFS, why not go further and eliminate the regiments?
You keep the name but you have a stronger former regiment.
This way you could have the 11th Avalon Hussars Demi-Brigade and not split the unit between the 2nd Avalon Hussars Demi-Brigade and another one.

This could decrease the number of people against the reform.

Good "interesting" or bad "interesting"? 

I like the infantry and artillery parts.

One thing I did do that you've not done is that the three 'like' battalions in a Demi-Brigade were all from one regiment, with the Demi-Brigade named for it. I can certainly see reasons for not doing that, since you're abolishing the regiment as more than an administrative purpose but in that case I wouldn't suggest then using the same formation names for regiments and for demi-brigades

For instance, the 11th Avalon Hussars ‘Mech Regiment is comprised of a  number of BattleMech Battalions, of which the 4th, 5th and 6th Battalions serve in the 2nd Avalon Hussars BattleMech Demi-Brigade.

This would just be confusing.

I'd suggest instead that the existing 'Mech regiments are broken up with one battalion retaining regimental number and the other battalion taking up the number from a fallen brother-regiment (or a new one). So the 11th Avalon Hussar Regiment become, for example, the 11th, 12th and 13th Avalon Hussar Battalions. The Demi-Brigades should either have their own distinct names or an entirely different naming pattern.

One possibility would be for names to come from the 'independent' Mech regiments that were sometimes combined arms regiments anyway. So the Kestrel Grenadiers or Kittery Borderers become Demi-Brigades.

There's multiple reasons for not eliminating the Regiment.

In-universe, the changes already wrought would cause some degree of angst, resentment and rebellion. Since the AFFS is in some ways the spiritual descendant of the British/Commonwealth army system, the soldier's regiment is a critical part of their esprit-de-corps. They will not want to tamper with that lightly.

So while the 11th Avalon Hussars Regiment, say, is definitely more prestigious than, oh, the Galax Mechanized Infantry Regiment, telling the grunts of the 3rd Battalion Galax MIR that they are now part of the Avalon Hussars simply because they're in the same Demi-brigade will have adverse consequences for morale.

Also, the way I interpreted Drakensis's original concept was that this is all about creating a far more robust and versatile tactical unit. Yes, adding 2 additional battalions strengthens via sheer numbers, but it also gives the Demi-brigade commander more options in more situations.

I tried to build on that by assigning independent battalions at Brigade level that give even more options.

Then if I do get it, you take a former Regiment of whatever and assign to it independent or newly created units to form a Demi Brigade?
If so, you could name the Demi-Brigade like the Regiment its main units come from?
Or did I get it wrong?
By doing this, you are just expanding the idea behind the naming of the RCT and you keep the people in the units happy and prepare for a future change.

The only question is: do you have enough independent/newly created units?