Ectanus Military Forces

The Ectanus Military Forces are the military organisation of the Ectanus Command. Built from the remains of UNSC and Colonial Militia forces left within Ectanus Command territory after the 2561 Hartmann Plan that saw the UEG contract into the Inner Colonies, the EMF is one of the largest military organisations in the Outer Colonies. Operating mostly-UNSC equipment, they operate and train closely with the Commonwealth Defence Force and the Lanuan Volunteer Force, as the three main defence forces of the Glasslands Defence Initiative. Participating in the New Zanzibar Front and the Mamore Crisis, their large size and well-equipped force allows them to be a force to be reckoned with.
== Role ==
=== National Defence ===
Whilst national defence mostly falls to the Planetary Defence Force and certain flotillas of the Ectanus Naval Command, it is nonetheless an important role to be filled. The defence of Ectanus Command's 22 systems and half a billion citizens is no small task, and as such national defence has a significant amount of resources dedicated to it. Well-equipped and ready, the orbital defences of the Gateway Core rival New South Wales' Caldwell Orbital Defence Grid in scale, size and power. National defence is a key priority, and as the Ectanus Command is part of the Glasslands Defence Initiative, that responsibility extends to all other members, namely the Federation of Lanua and the Commonwealth of New South Wales. In turn, their defence forces also aid in the protection and defence of the Ectanus Command's planets, ensuring a mutually-supporting and overlapping defence grid that is nigh-on impenetrable to any potential enemy.
=== Expeditionary Actions ===
The EMF has been known to undertake expeditions into unknown territory, as the spearhead of the Ectanus Command's multiple Sphere Expansion Programs. With a large focus on naval action and planetary invasions, they have proved a competent military force, rivalling the Commonwealth Defence Force in capability and experience, though dwarfing it in sheer size. During the Frontier Brush War, they proved plenty capable of taking occupied planets from adversaries, such as the grueling siege of Catrice from 2565-2567. As part of the GDI, the EMF also has to contribute a portion of its force to be commanded at the leisure of the GDI's Central Command as a ready-response force, and in case of conflict between nations in the Outer Colonies, can be deployed within a week to the combat zone along with other GDI forces.
== Branches ==
=== Ectanus Ground Command ===
The Ectanus Ground Command is the offensive planetary component of the EMF. The EGC is the largest branch of Ectanus' sizable military, recruiting from not only civilians within Ectanus Command's expansive territory, but also from former UNSC Army units, ex-Colonial Militia, and even UEG private military contractors all left in the Outer Colonies without support, following the UEG's chaotic withdrawal. This has led to the army's structure becoming more stringent and relaxed in terms of personnel and standard-unit regulations. Whilst many formations within the EGC are composite, following an Ectanus standard formation whilst retaining their members, others still are UNSC-based units operating within Ectanus territory when the Created Crisis occurred, or brand-new formations raised under the EGC structure.
The equipment used by the EGC is a mix of old and new. Almost all of the equipment, from rifles and reconnaissance vehicles to aircraft and heavy vehicles are from the UNSC, with a few designs created by the Commonwealth of NSW in limited service. Most equipment is procured for the EGC from the nation's large and expansive defence industry, a by-product of the extreme militarisation of industry during the Human-Covenant War. However more still is supplied by the UNSC itself. The equipment sent is obsolescent, hence its distribution to Ectanus Command. Approved by the UEG, the distribution of equipment to the EMF is seen as a necessary task, to assist them in equipping the ever-expanding military in preparation for any potential conflicts.
The Ectanus Ground Command recruits new soldiers and officers from within the nation in multiple ways. The first is standard recruiting through application and enlistment, from which most of the force comes from. The other methods are the enlistment of UNSC mercenaries, and the induction of foreign UNSC units into the army. Over 15% of the EGC comes from ex-UNSC units that fled the chaos of the Outer Colonies, hostile worlds, or the garrison on worlds that were annexed in Ectanus' Sphere Expansion Programs. Several high-profile figures have ended up within Ectanus Command's command structure through these expansions and recruits: notably, General Oliver Warrom, the current commander of the EGC, was a Lieutenant Colonel leading a band of UNSC Army Rangers on Cygnus II, when a small patrol squadron from the ENC rescued them from certain annihilation at the hands of a large URF force.
The main EGC officer campus is the large and expansive Garibaldi Institute, based on the planet of New Palermo. Able to teach a class of 2,000 officers a year, the facilities at Garibaldi rival even the Sol System's officer schools, and even the prestigious Luna OCS Academy. The CNSW sends officers to train with the Ectanus Command at the Garibaldi Institute every year, and the Federation of Lanua often uses the EGC's cordial relationship and their connection through the Glasslands Defence Initiative allows them to send their officer cadets to train on New Palermo, and even set up a Lanuan Volunteer Force training campus attached to the military college. Across Ectanus, there are other such schools, such as the Gateway Officer College and the Terra Aurelius Military College.
As the EGC is a strictly volunteer force, the recruitment agencies are very proactive in securing candidates and applications. These efforts often take the form of signing bonuses and a guaranteed position in whatever MOS the candidates specify. As the Ectanus Command is a very militaristic society, there are never shortages of manpower or understaffed positions, although the Planetary Defence Force as of late has been rapidly expanding, and as such most recruits have been diverted to PDF recruitment intakes.
===Ectanus Naval Command===
The Ectanus Naval Command is the naval component of the EMF. Centered around aiding the EGC in planetary invasions and their own mission of spatial superiority, the ENC, despite being the smallest of the three main branches of the EMF, are the most distinguished, and considered the 'Senior Service'. Containing both a marine component as well as a regular fleet, the ENC is arguably the strongest navy in the Outer Colonies, competing with the Commonwealth of New South Wales' substantial fleet in competence, strength and skill. Much like the EGC, the ENC was founded on Gateway by the first Commander in Chief of the Ectanus Command, Admiral George Hyde. Martialing the substantial and significant force of the 17th Fleet to his command, the other naval units in and around the Ectanus Command would flock to join the newly-established ENC. 
Expanding over the past decade to include 293 ships as of 2569, the ENC also gained manpower and equipment by absorbing bands of ex-UNSC vessels into the burgeoning fleet, and by obtaining older vessels from the UNSC itself. As the UEG mandated a minor draw-down in the size of the UNSC to better protect the Inner Colonies, dozens of ships were taken off the naval register, with the UNSC unsure of whether to scrap or store these light vessels. Approached by the Ectanus Command, the UNSC HIGHCOM agreed to dispatch obsolescent vessels, or those that were deemed 'surplus to requirements' to the ENC. Through this method, twenty five ships have been delivered to the ENC, all in relatively good condition although never exceeding the size of a light cruiser. Due to the proportionately-large amount of capital ships within the fleet, and the noteworthy cooperation had between the ENC and the Federation of Lanua's Lanuan Naval Service, most ENC flotillas include Lanuan vessels to make up for the disparity in escort hulls to capital vessels. 
Due to the acquisition of these vessels and the absorption of rogue UNSC flotillas into ENC command, the size of the fleet has increased significantly. However, that is not to say that Ectanus' naval industry is insignificant. Rather, the shipbuilding facilities around New Ottawa and New Palermo rival those of New South Wales, able to construct ships of up to battlecruiser size. Plans to increase the length and width of these docks to accommodate supercarrier and battleship construction, have been made, but the recent slew of naval contracts and the expansion of naval facilities in the Outer Ring of the Ectanus Command have halted these plans for the time being. The vessels of the Ectanus Command still use the 'UNSC' prefix for ships, due to the ongoing relationship between the two. 
The ENC almost entirely uses UNSC-designed ships in their fleet, with the exception of one class: the license to the Commonwealth's Redgum-class frigate was obtained in 2563, and eight were constructed around New Palermo to augment the light escort forces of the ENC. Other than these few frigates, the naval register remains an exclusively-UNSC roster, due to the presence of several UNSC shipbuilders within Ectanus, such as SinoViet Heavy Machinery. Due to this, the ENC usually receives design blueprints for newer ships from SinoViet and the UNSC, such as the Mulsanne-class frigate and the Poseidon-class carrier. However, SinoViet has tendered a design of heavy cruiser for exclusive use by the ENC, which is undergoing construction in the yards around New Palermo. 
The ENC recruits much in the same way as the EGC, through recruiting offices and augmentees from ex-UNSC forces in the Outer Colonies. Due to operating both the Ectanus Navy and the Ectanus Marine Corps, recruitment is split between these two sub-branches. The EMC is an extremely specialised planetary invasion force, with on-board security for ENC vessels coming from within the Ectanus Navy's Security Corps. The ENC also operates several military colleges across Ectanus, the most important of which is the Eastern Creek Naval Academy, based on Gateway. Others, such as the Vandergrift Officer School and the Prince Edward Institute, also contribute to the large and capable officer corps of the ENC. 
===Special Operations Branch===
The Special Operations Branch is the main headquarters command structure that is instrumental in managing and coordinating all of Ectanus' special forces units. Whilst not a fully-independent branch (as all units within the SOB operate as either EGC or ENC-regulation formations), they are still the sole commanding structure mandating any operations undertaken by the units involved. Containing four major branches from the EGC and ENC, there are also several smaller units that have specialised roles within the SOB. As with the EGC and ENC, many individuals and small section units are made up of recruits from the Outer Colonies outside of Ectanus' borders.
The four main units within the SOB are split evenly between the ENC and EGC: The Ectanus Army Special Forces, Ectanus Army Rangers, Alpha Unit, and the 1/2 Void Marine Raiders. Each specialises in different types of warfare, and are deployed as such. The Ectanus Army Special Forces are the largest unit within the SOB, with 84,000 active personnel and a mission statement of training insurgencies and counter-insurgency operations. Headquartered with SOBCOM at Stirling Barracks, Ectanus Army Special Forces has engaged in multiple conflicts, including limited assistance to Commonwealth forces during the New Zanzibar Front, and active guerrilla warfare operations behind Wasteland Domain lines during the Frontier Brush War.
The Ectanus Army Rangers are similar to the regular Special Forces in organisation. The size of three over-strength divisions, some 40,000 soldiers, the Army Rangers' doctrine relates mostly to sharp breakthrough operations and to engage in warfare involving light infantry. Adept at aerial and spatial insertion, the Rangers served during the Frontier Brush War on Breckenridge III and Pine Gap, and were extremely effective in their seizure of Banished strongpoints. Their headquarters is not actually within the Ectanus Command, but rather located on the Commonwealth planet of New Corinth, along with the Z Special Unit.
Alpha Unit is the largest ENC unit operating under the SOB command structure. Alpha Unit fulfils a niche role of hostage-rescue and naval special operations, located with the SOB's main headquarters in Stirling Barracks. Alpha Unit is made up of 48,000 sailors divided into four divisions, most of whom are then divided into smaller squadrons and composite units. It is not uncommon to see Alpha Unit soldiers conducting missions in units of section-size across the Outer Colonies and territories of what could be considered sovereign nations. They served in the New Zanzibar Front, the Mamore Crisis and the Frontier Brush War, acting as Headhunters that assassinated Banished commanders and officers.
The 1/2 Void Marine Raiders are perhaps the most elite special forces unit within the EMF. Specialised entirely in space combat and void warfare, the 1/2 VMR are extremely capable in void operations such as infiltration, boarding actions, and general EVA operations. Made up of 8,000 personnel, their headquarters is on the secretive Commodore Jameson Naval Station, located in the orbit of the moon of New Palermo, Whilst being considered the 'best of the best', they have only been engaged in three operations, which resulted in the destruction of a Banished defence platform above Breckenridge III, the successful kidnapping of Insurrectionist commander Ingham Salazar, and the capture of the Bandit's Bane.
===Planetary Defence Force===
==History==
==Equipment==
==Notable Personnel==
==Ranks and Insignia==