Reds

"*I shall remain vigilant and unyielding in my pursuit of the enemies of the CORE. I will defend and maintain the order of life as it was proclaimed by the ElderKnights of the CORE in the Octus Canon. I will forsake the life I had before so I may perform my duty as long as I am needed. Steadfast, I shall hold my place in the machine and acknowledge my place in the CORE. I am a Red.*"
—Oath of the CORE, sworn by all Recruits
**Red** is the term for the standard infantry of the Communist Ordered Republiks of Etixnare armed forces. The term comes from the ideologies which signifies the unity of the CORE and the place of the Red. Reds are highly trained and resilient soldiers, having been in a continuous state of war ever since the End War. As of the Extinction War, the Reds are the primary military opposition to the Scaler Swarm. Reds are organized into squads of four to six soldiers, as opposed to the swarm tactics employed by the Scalers. Reds are usually marked by the Crimson Omen emblem. One of the most famous, respected and pre-dominant of all of the Red unit divisions was the 4th Zerichstaz Infantry. The 4 ZI usually appeared in many forms of media and press conferences and were regarded as one of the most respected unit divisions in the infantry of the CORE Army. In the aftermath of the Battle of Kurdun Fields and Operation: Deliverance, five members were awarded the Cobalt Star; William O'Malley, Pavel Kennedy, Gary Thornton, Thomas Kennedy (posthumously) and Tina Byrne.

## History

### End War

With the formation of the Communist Ordered Republiks of Etixanre and its armed forces, Reds were the standard infantry soldier of the CORE. After the End War began, the CORE sent their Reds to fight on the front lines from the Isa Rouge Front to the Eastern Front in GasGar. The Reds were sent across Etixnare to fight on various frontlines against DNA to hold territories in hopes of capturing areas where Chudo-Toplivo was located. They fought a mostly land-based war, with little use of aerial and naval assets. The End War soon entered into a stalemate that would last the majority of the war. The Red were also used to conquer territories and land for colonization, such as the South Islands.

Some of the most notable battles of the End War had seen trench warfare for the Reds in the Isa Rouge Republic, a small island nation. As the End War progressed, the Mk 1 Claymore Assault Rifle was introduced into the CORE army and the Dremic soldiers of the DNA grew a great disdain for its bayonet. While many fronts of the End War saw heavy casualties, there were “quiet fronts” where both DNA and CORE border posts never opened fire on each other for at least ten years. One of the most bloody fronts was the Eastern Front, where the CORE lost untold numbers of Reds to the DNA. The survivors were captured and sent to the BroadMarsh prison camp and faced gruesome war crimes there. Reds at the Longrov Prison repaid the favor with their own atrocities against the DNA prisoners of war.

By 17 B.E., the main focal point of the war was in the Eastern Central Massif where Medikamente and Hephaestos were located. Medikamente was a CORE aligned nation that contained 1/5th of Etixnare’s Chudo-Toplivo reservoirs. On the other hand, was Hephaestos, a DNA nation that had neutral Rukodvsto in between them both. After Rukodvsto's economy collapsed, Hephaestoian troops invaded and attacked Medikamente. Reds stationed both in Anvil Gate and Muzkiv defended their positions against the DNA advance. 2nd Covvsterich Regiment defended the frontlines in Muzkiv while the 4th ZI defended Anvil Gate and its pass.

Reds like Captain. Sean O'Malley and Lt. Gary Thornton were able to accomplish their duties during the DNA invasion of Medikamente. Sean O'Malley was able to take out a sniper position in the heart of Muzkiv city and, after the retreat to the main battle group, he held the lines at Roggard city, losing only ten Reds and stopping a DNA armored convoy. Gary Thornton and his Reds, along with Militia riflemen, killed over two hundred Dremic soldiers and held Anvil Gate and the southern pass into the heart of Medikamente. After the Medikamente invasion ended, Sean O'Malley would retire and enter civilian life to research the Hammer of Dawn, and Gary Thornton would break the mold of the CORE army and start using commando tactics to win battles instead of large amounts of soldiers and tanks.

### Extinction War

Several weeks after the End War most Red units were on leave when the Scalers attacked. On the early hours of Emergence Day, rumors spread that the DNA or its holdout states restarted the war. After discovering that a subterranean species called the Scaler Swarm was behind the attack, the CORE mobilized all its units. Many Reds, partook in such notable operations as the Operation: Overstrike and Operation: IronFist, in hopes that it would eradicate the Swarm, and finally end the war. Operation: Overstrike resulted in the death of Scaler General Darg, but not in their defeat so the CORE was forced to send a massive army of Reds into the UnderHollow during Operation: IronFist in an attempt to wipe out the Scaler on their home turf as The HPDB was close to falling. The attack succeeded when Reds detonated a bomb under St.McCarthy and sank the city, flooding the UnderHollow and drowning most of the Scaler Swarm.

## Propaganda

"*A military life attracts young people for many reasons - duty, comradeship, purpose, the opportunity to test life to the limits, to learn a trade, escape from home, adventure-even patriotism. But for the youngster lacking a stable caring home, it provides family, with all the security and meaning that goes with it. They crave the structure, approval, attention, and clear rules that their parents should have given them; and we can supply it.*"

## Equipment

Reds are equipped with standard CORE armor and weapons, i.e.; Claymore Assault Rifle, Gristbite-897 Shotgun and M4A3 Pistol. This is standard unless a Red is a designated marksman, in which case they are equipped with the Darkhorses, and has a specially adapted helmet, or is part of a specific unit with different equipment requirements.

### Pre Emergence Days

Reds are equipped with a range of protective armor, most notably the heavy bullet-resistant cuirass and the compatible apparatus-equipped helmet that provides protection from inhaled chemicals, blunt trauma, shrapnel, and low-velocity or poorly aimed bullets. However, the helmets offer no protection from a high-velocity Longshot Sniper Rifle round.A rare exception to this is a Red who survived a Darkhorse round (albeit a glancing hit) from a Outlander guard. As well as a variety of other equipment that helps to support them on the battlefield. They also use a wide range of powerful weapons, as said above.

Some Gear squads have access to bot units, but the high level of attrition the bot units have suffered combined with the ongoing Extinction War have made replacement components for bot units to be an increasingly-uncommon commodity. Currently, only elite and high-level squads are entrusted with bot units, though many Gear units are alleged to make use of salvaged replacements when available.

### Post E-Day

Bot units used to be common, even expendable, equipment for Gear squads. Colonel Hoffman once stated, "I can remember when these things came by the crate load." All bot units have a name, such as Frank, Bruce, or Jack.

### Hard times

After the Sinking of St.McCarthy, and the Outlander Insurgency, Red supplies were at an all-time low. Most Reds scavenged what armor and weapons they could. Reds would often appear in mismatched or crudely repaired armor with random helmets, some choosing to take the risk and go without one.

With the absence of Mk 2 Claymore Assault Rifle parts, they started using the Mk 1 Claymore Assault Rifle again and also started using more of the ancient M5A2 Carbine from early in the End War. After so many years of war, the pristine image of the CORE's "Armored Wonders" became a distant memory.

## Relationship with the Outlanders

After the orbital bombardment of Etixnare, there were millions of humans left to fend for themselves. The now-dubbed "Outlanders" generally view the CORE and the Reds as fascist for sacrificing them to the Scaler onslaught and exchanging freedom for security. However, not all Outlanders have the same viewpoint on the CORE. Some have enlisted in Operation Lifeboat but find life in the military difficult, either due to being low-rank soldiers or being distanced from family. While the CORE views the Outlander and their "independent" lifestyle as treason and will do anything to deny the Outlanders supplies and force them one step closer to joining the CORE's ranks, in some instances Outlanders have joined sides with the Reds for mutual benefaction. Some Outlanders are just as hostile as the Scaler Swarm, however.

## Physiology

After more than a century of war, many of the surviving Reds have heavily muscular physiques do to being hardened through combat. On the other end some Younger Reds may have a smaller physique do to not having as much combat experience.