Cardassian Guard

Emblem of the Union (pdmahler)

The **Cardassian Guard**, natively ***Cardăsa Açevro***, meaning "guardians of Cardassia," was the military of the Cardassian Union until it was dissolved in 2378 and reformed as the Cardassian Defense Force. It was overseen by Cardassian Central Command and was divided into twelve Orders.

## History

After a tumultuous 2377 and 2378, where large elements of the Guard sought to rekindle war with the former Triple Alliance, the service was formally dissolved and restructured as the Cardassian Defense Force.

## Organization

### Orders

The Guard was divided into twelve units called Orders or *Cayr'haylo*. Each order was comprised of several divisions or *zhorghător*, a unit containing twenty-one thousand six hundred soldiers or *deçătharo*, and fleets or *çodărho*, units of one hundred and fifty to three hundred vessels. The fleets were further broken down into *tarelcor* of thirty to sixty ships, then *ceselcor* of twelve to fifteen ships, and finally into *dayelcor* of three ships. The divisions were broken into *ceçărho* or seven thousand two hundred soldiers, then into *peçdar* of a twelve hundred soldiers, *brhelgharho* of three hundred soldiers, *mezreco* of thirty soldiers, and finally *thecasor* of fifteen soldiers.

Several specializations existed within the Guard and its Orders. The Mechanized Infantry operated ground vehicles to be used in the transportation of soldiers and combat against enemy ground troops.

### Ranks

The Guard had a small number of official ranks for its *deçătharo*. This was due to the role that *vesală*, seniority and family relations, played within Cardassian society, including the service. While merit helped an individual advance in rank, the longest-serving officer within a rank was seen as the superior, or *çăsi*. For example, though each starship in a triad unit (*dayelcor*) would be commanded by a gul, the officer in charge of the unit would be the Jagul (*Çăgul*). Each fleet within in Order was overseen by a gul known as the Arjagul (*Arçăgul*). The legate who commanded an Order was referred to as an *Idrhig* *Thăkliv*, roughly translated as "field legate," to differentiate their role from the those in Central Command.

### Academies

The Guard had three military academies, allowing soldiers to specialize in their required fields. The most difficult was Ba'dorah, the school focused on training cadets (*deghi'ilzin*) in command. Ba'kolmoir trained in the sciences and engineering, while Ba'gurfe was for those focusing on operations. B'marren was the school for ground troops.

## Spacecraft

The Guard used the standard Union naming convention for its spacecraft, that being the vessel’s designation followed by its class. To avoid confusion, no two vessels carried the same name and names were not repeated within the same class, i.e. if a vessel of a specific class was destroyed a newly constructed one of the same class could not carry that name.

## Awards and citations

One of the most prestigious awards within the Guard was the Legate's Crest of Valor. Recipients were chosen by a legate's staff, though final approval came from the legate themself. Being given the award bestowed a significant amount of *vesală* upon an individual.

A more common citation was the Proficient Service Medallion. This was awarded to members of the Guard who made notable contributions to the goals of the Union.

## Appendices

### Connections

**Notable spacecraft:** CUV *Damar* • CUV *Letau* • CUV *Taced* • CUV *Tain*

**Spacecraft classes:** *Brinok* • *Damar* • *Detapa* • *Galor* (*Keldon*) • *Ghemor* • *Groumall* (*Tuffli*) • *Hideki* (*Yukuwa*) • *Kulinor* • *Rasilak* • *Sartan* • *Thakliv* • *Vasad* • *Vidren* • *Vystan*

**Facility classes:** *Cefta* • *Nor*

### Sources consulted

* Cardassian Guard article at *Memory Alpha*.
* Cardassian Guard article at *Memory Beta*.
* Cardassian Guard article at *Star Trek Expanded Universe*.
* *The Dominion War Sourcebook: The Fires of Armageddon* by Last Unicorn Games.

### Footnotes

1. ↑ Derived from Cardassian ranks article at the Star Trek Expanded Universe wiki and *The Dominion War Sourcebook*.