Thane's Isle Armed Forces

The Thane's Isle armed forces are the military forces of Thane's Isle. The armed forces consist of eight branches, these being; The Army Reserve, the Knights of Fall, the Knights of the Moon Sea, the Knights of the Blue Cross, the Knights of the Red Bear, the Solation Guard, the Knights of the Northern Isles, and the Thane's Guard. Other smaller branches of "knights" exist, such as the Knights of the Rusted Rail, and Knights of the Walls, but these are seen more as security functions and are not officially part of the military.

Each branch of the Thane's Isle army carries with it a different specialty. The Thane's Guard's sole duties are to guard the Thane of Universe Eight and his apocolites, and follow their commands even if it means following said thane or apocolite into a combat situation in war. The Knights of the Northern Isles (initially) were tasked with removing extra-terrestrial threats from Universe Eight, but later became support squads for other branches acting in the direct name of the Thane of Universe Eight. The Knights of Fall are the general infantry, the Knights of the Red Bear are amphibious marines. The Knights of the Moon Sea make up Thane's Isle's navy, and the Knights of the Blue Cross are the Air Force. The outlier is the Solation Guard, the newest of the branches, which guards industries and banks, as well as strategic elements. The Solation Guard functions mostly as a "national guard."

This ranking system of the military developed from the Thane's Isle Grand Army, which served under Wynton Kellogg. It included the moniker of "Knights" as well, as a holdover from an earlier time. Though, the two branches of "knights" at that time were the "Knights of the Northern Isles," and the "Knights of the Green Pine." The latter would later go on to make up the bulk of the Republik army. The army is mostly referred to as "knights", despite the fact that the gun long supplanted the sword, and the 'knights of yore' have not been seen in centuries.

The Thane of Universe Eight is in direct control of all military functions, and is supported by the clergy, a council of senators and governors, and a council of business moguls. These departments act as the principal organs by which military policy is carried out.

The Thane's Isle armed forces is noted and feared due to its large size, and much of Thane's Isle spending goes towards arms manufacturing and furthering the force's projects and ambitions. They are currently considered Universe Eight's most powerful military, due to having the Thane of Universe Eight, and ten powerful apocolites at their disposal, as well as hundreds of thousands (possibly even millions) of personnel at various forts and military outposts, on the Island of Oilton, in every major city, on the waters, and in the sky on airforts.

Currently, the Thane's Isle armed forces is embroiled in a two-front war, against the Second Afterlifian People's Republik, and the Sun Nation by proxy (and direct conflict). This war is referred to as "The Thane's Isle Civil War."

## Structure:

From the top down, the Thane of Universe Eight has final say over all military matters, and may make a command that defies the wishes of any council, parliament, doctrine, or citizen. Second to the Thane are the Gregaronian Clergy, who assure that the Thane's wishes ally with the wishes of King Gregoros the Wise, who may revert a Thane's decision if need be. Beneath the Clergy are the army's investors, who with their gold can influence the production of arms, and vote on military decisions with their money. Beneath them, are the governors of states, townships, and counties, who may make recommendations on behalf of their settlements.

The highest rank in the Thane's Isle armed forces is the rank of "Commander." The rank of "General" was previously used, but was abandoned by Zenzele to avoid generals making decisions while soldiers went off to die on their behalf. All ranks below Commander (the one immediately below it being "Captain") were not replaced.

## Service Branches:

### General Service Branches:

#### Thane's Isle Reserve:

The Thane's Isle reserve is the lowest-tiered operating branch of the Thane's Isle armed forces. They are known pejoratively as "greybellies", due to their colorless grey uniforms. The Reserve is the beginning of a soldier's career, before they are assigned into a specialist class. Reserve soldiers will be assigned to forts for training, and then deployment (still as a reserve) in one of the three central branches, before being promoted either to an enlisted member of that branch, or to a higher rank of reserve soldier. The Reserves make up the largest portion of the army.

#### The Knights of Fall:

The Knights of Fall serve as the general army of Thane's Isle, and are noted due to their orange-patterned uniforms. The Knights of Fall were formed during the Tumult, and their name was originally "Knights of the Fall" as many of their early soldiers wore gold uniforms, and fought alongside Zenzele Azikiwe in notable battles of the Tumult. Their name was later shortened, and their uniform was changed from gold to orange, due to orange blending better with the red foliage of Thane's Isle. The Knights of Fall are stationed in townships and military bases, and may be deployed in any land engagement Thane's Isle encounters. The Knights of Fall have a small fleet of boats and ships, as well as aircraft, that can provide deployment of soldiers at a faster rate. There are hundreds of divisions in the Knights of Fall, including airborne and special operations divisions. The Knights of Fall are the second-largest force in the Thane's Isle Armed Forces.

#### The Knights of the Moon Sea:

The Knights of the Moon Sea make up Thane's Isle's maritime force. They were originally established as the Thane's Isle Continental Navy. Their ships are named with the suffix of "KN", standing for "Knight's Navy". Their objective is to control the seas and islands immediately surrounding Thane's Isle, with total dominance over the waters. Their fleet sports boats from the smallest patrol craft, to ships of massive size such as aircraft carriers and battleships (some as large as the Earthen Iowa-Class). The Knights of the Moon Sea are often in collaboration with the Knights of the Blue Cross, especially in concern to aircraft carriers. When a plane takes off from the deck of a Moon Sea carrier, it falls under Knights of the Blue Cross jurisdiction, requiring a massive amount of communication and cooperation between the two branches. They wear sea-green uniforms, mixed with grey, the sea-green becoming less pronounced as the soldiers rise higher in rank.

#### The Knights of the Blue Cross:

The Knights of the Blue Cross function as the air force of Thane's Isle, using airplanes, helicopters, and airforts to assert dominance over the skies. They are one of the newer branches, as the airplane was "invented" on Thane's Isle shortly after the War of Seven Eight, during the technological boom that was the "Third Age of Technology," seemingly only to happen on Universes Eight and Nine. The Knights of the Blue Cross are in close collaboration with the Knights of the Moon Sea, and often are seen operating together when combined naval and air operations are concerned. They wear sky-blue uniforms, mixed with grey, the sky-blue becoming less pronounced as the soldier rises higher in rank.

### Specialized Branches:

#### The Knights of the Red Bear:

Named for the three-legged Red Bear of Havenlyn Wood (slain by Harold of the Craiq), the Knights of the Red Bear are considered some of the fiercest warriors and fighters on Thane's Isle. The Knights of the Red Bear function as the marine fighting force, often performing amphibious assaults and special operations deemed too advanced for the Knights of Fall or Reserve. They are armed with the most advanced Afterlifian and Earthen technology the country has to offer, and they wear red uniforms, mixed with grey, the red becoming less pronounced as the soldier rises higher in rank.

#### The Solation Guard:

Initially formed during the Tumult by "Sol Steel Corporation", the Solation Guard was founded in order to protect the Sol Steel Mill in the Eastern Hills region of Thane's Isle. They initially fought on behalf of the corporations, but eventually sided their interests with the rising apocolite Zenzele, and assisted him in his claiming of the throne of Universe Eight. Their function is to break unions, remove labor leaders, and destroy dissidents of the state of Thane's Isle. They do not use approved or stock firearms of the Thane's Isle military, instead using weapons supplied (or made) from unknown manufacturers. They operate with free domain, on a blank check from the government. They were officially inducted as a branch of the Thane's Isle armed forces in 21 A.O.G. They wear black and red robe-like uniforms, with silver-steel hats with a single spike at the top. Their ranking system is unknown, but it is assumed to be similar to that of the other Thane's Isle branches.

### Protective and Commanding Branches:

#### The Universe Eight Thane's Guard:

The Thane's Guard functions as a service to protect the Thane of Universe Eight and his apocolites from harm. They receive commands from only the thane and apocolites, but orders from apocolites can be overruled by the thane, and orders from the thane can be overruled by a minister from Universe Nine (acting in the name of the King). The Thane's Guard are sworn to lay down their lives for Thane and country, and are trained in all manner of defensive tactics, as well as military doctrine and strategy. Most Thane's Guard reside in the manor at King's Hill, but have been known to fight in armed engagements if an apocolite or thane elects to do so themselves. The Thane's Guard wear cyan uniforms, mixed with grey, the cyan becoming less pronounced as the soldier rises in rank.