The Six Banners

ECONOMY TREND ANALYSIS CHALLENGE

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The Six Banners are the six main components of the Kurun's military. The Six Banners are the Green Banner (sub-orbital operations), the Black Banner (space operations), the Vermilion Banner (special operations), the Blue Banner (robotic forces, divided between the other banners), and the Golden Banner (Sibe defense force). The sixth banner is the combined military political apparatus of the KWG and the SQD, which is often called the White Banner when referring to it as a whole. There are (big number) active personnel in the Six Banners, as well as (big number) inactive personnel. This does not include the forces of the Blue Banner or clone battalions, which amount to close to another (big number) soldiers (more or less), about half of which are active.
Additionally, it is thought the Soviets have roughly (big number) further troops between them, but because of the difficulty in ascertaining the true numbers of Soviet defense forces, this is not a definitive estimate. Most of these troops belong to the Qiu Soviet, with a significant minority belonging to the Sechen Soviet and a much smaller portion going to the Kangde Soviet.

**The Green Banner**

The Green Banner is responsible for sub-orbital operations, including aerial, aquatic, and ground operations. Like every banner, it has units of the Blue and White Banners integrated into its forces. It has by far the largest number of soldiers- (number) active and (number) reserves, to be specific- and is garrisoned around the Kurun. Most Green Banner units are based in Sibe, while significant forces are also positioned in Sizang (for its proximity to Azar). Most of the rest are positioned in Risol or Hejol, with very few units being allocated to the defense of the Soviet systems.

The Green Banner, like all branches of the Shan military, believes in the use of overwhelming force and total war strategies. To this end, the Banner tends to focus on equipping the largest number of soldiers possible with the maximum amount of firepower possible. Green Banner ground forces invariably possess large and well-equipped artillery and armored units, and these are well-supported by Green Banner air and missile forces. Collateral damage is not a concern for the Shan, save for when it affects their own troops, and for this reason, the Green Banner frequently makes use of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, as well as other systems such as cluster bombs that have been done away with by other nations.
Cluster bombs are extremely popular among the Shan, as are other submunition-based weapons systems, for their effectiveness and low costs. The Shan employ a wide variety of cluster munitions, ranging from incendiary gel bombs to flechette rounds to high explosives, land mines, chemical bombs, nanoattack systems, biological contaminant dispensers, and radioactive contaminant dispensers. They prefer not to use nuclear munitions for the danger that fallout poses, but are somewhat less restrained when it comes to the use of weapons of mass destruction than other races.

The average Green Banner infantry soldier is equipped with a KXY-17 assault rifle, a KXM-12 machine pistol, a combat knife, several grenades, along with body armor and a smart helmet and smart contacts. Most squads have Designated Weapons Specialists (DWS), equipped with heavy weapons such as rocket launchers or heavy cannons, and Designated Marksmen (DM) equipped with sniper rifles. They are invariably supported by several small UAVs or, in underground or exoatmospheric settings, other small unmanned reconnaissance systems, and also typically have a White Banner political officer attached during combat or active duty. Cooperation and sacrifice are key elements of the Shan army, with acceptable losses being a normal part of military calculations, and timely artillery and air support being key to the achievement of goals. Shan soldiers undergo rigorous training and have excellent communications systems.

**The Black Banner**

The Black Banner is the next-largest wing of the Shan military, and along with the Green Banner forms its main arm. The Black Banner is responsible for all operations beyond suborbital or low orbit altitudes, and controls the Shan space fleet. Shan ships are not usually equipped with artificial gravity, but their efficient dual-drive nuclear lightbulb/fusion subluminal drive systems and the physics of their gimelspace drives mean that they are built more like towers than like ships. Under thrust gravity, "down" is aft, meaning the stern is "under" the bow.

The Black Banner's crewed ships are primarily logistical craft and carriers. Because of the violent maneuvers and weight efficiency that is so required for combat craft, very few of the Kurun's actual attack craft are manned. Rather, they are controlled by artificial intelligences, often with some direction from the ship's crew. Only the largest of the Black Banner's battleships are manned, and they typically have fairly small crews. Black Banner ships typically release their combat drones well away from the actual area where fighting is occurring, controlling them from afar and occasionally lobbing in lasers or missiles as needed (if they have any). Large manned combat craft occasionally accompany drone fleets, but in general all but the most powerful Shan attack craft are robotic. Bombardment craft, which typically have a Green Banner contingent on board as well, are manned, and transports also usually have a small crew.

Average Black Banner spacers are equipped only with a KXM-12 machine pistol in terms of weaponry, and occasionally a knife, but boarding is almost unheard of in the Shan experience with space combat. Many manned ships have tiny Blue Banner security contingents, but these are typically quite small and rarely used, as boarding is totally unheard of.

**The Vermilion Banner**

The Vermilion Banner is the creme de la creme of the Kurun's military, made up of elite soldiers drawn from the best units in the other banners and highly trained special operations troops. These soldiers often provide security for high-ranking politicians and military officers, and regularly perform covert, high-risk missions on enemy territory, usually in Azar, but also often against rebellious elements in the frontier or Soviet systems. The Vermilion Banner also acts as a rapid-reaction force, capable of swiftly responding with overwhelming force against enemy threats.

Most of Shan doctrine is centered around attrition warfare and swarming tactics, using brute numbers to overwhelm the enemy, but the Vermilion Banner is different. It also has some of the brightest officers in the military, and places much more emphasis on maneuver as a key component of warfare, influenced somewhat by Amiiri ideas on these matters. Vermilion Banner troops and officers are tactically and strategically highly aware and able to plan, coordinate, and execute clever maneuvers to aid them in defeating opponents.

The Banner, as it draws from the best units from each of the other banners, has multiple sub-branches, including a small fleet and army, a political department, robotic troops, and troops who remain in Sibe (mainly security forces for high-ranking officials).