The Circle of Rank

Well, I've been away a while, busy with family and things back home and I am back to being a Sergeant. Never felt like I really belonged as a major anyway. I'm off of recruitment but still happy to help when I am available. I always did think Sergeant was the most comfortable rank. It's a nice useful one without too much responsibility. I'll just sit back a while and watch what you all do with the place.

Courage, Honor, and Discipline,

Sergeant Zisa
Dragon Legion

Me a Major?

So, just as I was planning on adding a section to this manual about promotion, I found myself promoted to the rank of major. Promotion is a strange thing. At the lower ranks it feels wonderful and at the higher ranks, if it doesn't feel at least a bit like an unhappy burden, you probably aren't taking the job seriously enough. I'm still adjusting to the idea that I'm a part of high command. That just seems odd. Only about a year ago I was as green and untried as any serf and spouting high ideals about courage and honor without really knowing what they meant.

So, anyway, there seem to be two kinds of new soldiers. The first is the soldier with no plans of being anything but a soldier. He wants to get physically strong and beat up all his buddies in the arena and get a girl and a cottage and settle down to a nice fun sort of a life. The second envisions himself as the future commander with an entire army jumping to do his bidding at the slightest whim. Both of these are wrong. Both of these are bound to be disappointed in one way or another.

Lets consider the first guy. He's a fun loving sort and happy to help with finding people weapons or panning for ore but isn't interested in trainings, and when his superiors start to harp on him about all those qualifications he isn't getting, he gets mad and sometimes leaves town. Alternatively, he makes a point of sleeping whenever his officers are looking for people to train. Then, when an invasion comes along and he's appointed logistics officer, he has no idea what he's supposed to do and people end up dead because he didn't take his oath seriously.

The second sort of soldier tends to rise in rank fairly quickly if he has even half a brain. He gets all his qualifications and certifications knocked out in no time and finds himself in a position of working very hard all the time. If power is his goal, he probably trains physically very hard too and feels he is better than his superiors because he can beat them in the arena. When he gains rank he sometimes gains an attitude of self importance and forgets to really listen and understand what his fellow soldiers are telling him. He either ends up falling from grace in a fit of pique and poor conduct, or he gets burnt out in short order and sleeps a lot.

Most of the soldiers I meet fall into one of the two categories. I know I have to wait for them to mature into the ideas of rank as responsibility, and duty as work to be done for the greater good of the garrison. If you can manage to adjust to the idea that an officer is on some level a servant of his soldiers and not the other way around, you will have a much more realistic view of promotion.

anatomy of a soldier

(you can click the image to see it bigger if you like. Also, thanks go to mjranum-stock on deviant art for this photo that I used as a basis for the soldier sketch.)

Officer's Song

The immigrants are new to town
they never seem to wear a frown.
They see the bracer wearin fellas
in the tavern and they say,
I'm gonna be, an officer someday.

And they ask, Corporal tell me what to do,
I wanna be just like you.
And the corporals say.
It's not to late for you to start,
I got my Q's all on the chart,
If you work hard, you can be a corporal too.

The soldiers in their new armbands
slap their chests with fisted hands.
They watch the others caravan.
On patrol you hear them say,
I'm gonna be, an officer someday.

And they ask, Sergeant tell me what to do,
I wanna be just like you.
And the Sergeants Say,
You gotta get those trainings in
qualify and cert and then,
If you work hard, you can be a Sergeant too.

The fellas in the barracks think
that all the girls would smile and wink
if they had higher bracers on
and so they sing a quiet song;
I'm gonna be, an officer someday.

And they ask, Lieutenant tell me what to do,
I wanna be just like you.
And the Lieutenant heaves a heavy sigh,
with a baffled look he asks them, why.
May Waylumi help ya wee daft things,
he shakes his head and then he sings,
If you work hard, you can be Lieutenant too.

The Chain of Command, Explained

First, don't stress. If you make it to induction, you'll figure it out so don't feel like you have to memorize the ranks right away. I'm not going to give you the roster here because that changes all the time and by the time you need it, you can check the guild board.

Rank is important. It comes from the duke himself and it isn't given out randomly. You have to earn your rank and it can and will be taken from you if you abuse it. Rank is given to those who do the work of getting trained and training others and those who prove they can handle leadership. When a superior gives an order, you follow it. If you disagree with it, you can take your concern up the chain of command. Do so privately and not publicly.

Ranks, from highest to lowest.

The Duke

The Fighterlord

Commander

General

Major

Advisor

(The above constitute what's known as High Command)

Captain

Lieutenant

Sergeant

Corporal

(all of the ranks, Corporal and up, are considered officers.)

Soldier

Shield Cleaner - This is a new rank, instituted by the duke for people not worthy of being soldiers but that he wants to give the chance of redeeming themselves. May you never hold this rank.

Recruit - A person who hopes to someday be a soldier.

The Hamster Song

The Hamster Song

Frohmond had a furry friend,
a hamster Scoundrel to the end,
that day the orcs were chanting Oooohm.
Frohmond carried him to war,
because, what else are hamsters for?
The garrison mustered to the tune
of ominous orcish magic men,
and the public all joined them,
because even then we knew,
orcs were coming, it was true,
The day, Froh's hamster died.

So I'm singin, hello, Mawger the red
we tried to kill you but you didn't get dead.
Lots of soldiers and civilians kissed their asses goodbye,
On the day, that Scoundrel died.
The day, Froh's hamster died.

Then we spotted in the sky
a dragon circling way up high.
It was Magwer the Red .
We watched the mighty beast
as on our guards he had a feast.
Our bold protectors dead,
The commander brought us to his side
but the dragon had a sturdy hide
Before we scratched him Magwer fled.
We fought hard but he's not dead.
That day, Scoundrel died.

And we were singin, hello, Mawger the red
we tried to kill you but you didn't get dead.
Lots of soldiers and civilians kissed their asses goodbye,
On the day, that Scoundrel died.
The day, Froh's hamster died.

Then Frohmond took his fearsome pet
to the northern gate where the hamster met
Mawger, as he spit a gate gaurd's bone.
Scoundrel put his warface on.
Mawger bent his neck down like a swan,
to greet that hamster, not yet grown,
and then his giant maw gaped wide.
and then he spouted dragon flame.
Scoundrel won't ever be the same.
“Mawger feared him,” was Froh's said,
the day that hamster died.

And we were singin, hello, Mawger the red
we tried to kill you but you didn't get dead.
Lots of soldiers and civilians kissed their asses goodbye,
On the day, that Scoundrel died.
The day, Froh's hamster died.

War Doesn't Wait

You might be with your honey,

A soft sweet little bunny,

who's pouring out a full heart,

when you get the order,

there's orcs at the border,

and you must leave her alone in the dark.

This job can be jealous,

and seem overzealous,

but you made an oath long ago,

and the tenets come first,

you knew the worst,

when the major says go, you must go.

War doesn't wait.

You're already late.

Join your brothers and sisters at arms.

Better run, better fly.

Could be your day to die,

protecting the public from harm.

On your buddy's new boat,

'cause it's his turn to gloat,

about how he's got it so good.

He's got power and money,

a life that is sunny,

everything that his guild said he would.

Then you heave a sigh,

'cause you hear the cry,

and you gotta make him sail in.

The duke is in town,

assassins are found,

you know you are needed again.

War doesn't wait.

You're already late.

Join your brothers and sisters at arms.

Better run, better fly.

Could be your day to die,

protecting the good duke from harm.

This job can be jealous,

and seem overzealous,

but you made an oath long ago,

and the tenets come first,

you knew the worst.

When the major says go, you must go.