Royal Kouralian Army

'A Sinistra in Dextram'
The Flag of the Kouralian Army
Founded	1600AD
Current form	2000
Headquarters	The Ministry of Defence (Civil HQ) Camp Bastoke
Leadership
Her Majesty	Queen Alyx Campbell
Minister of Defence	Sir Bernard Wallace
Lord Commander	Richard Croft
Personnel
Military age	18-63
Conscription	Not in Effect
Reaching military age annually	(3,500,000 2012 Census)
Active personnel	2,500,000
Reserve personnel	1,000,000
Industry
Domestic suppliers	Kouralian National Armoury, KAE Systems (Kouralia)
Foreign suppliers	Anemonian State Arms Export Authority (Anemos Major),Licanan Military Provider, Crookfur Arms (Crookfur)

The Royal Kouralian Army is the Land-Warfare Service of the Kouralian Military, the senior service by precedence and the largest service. With 50 Divisions, predominantly mechanised or armoured, the Royal Kouralian Army is significantly smaller than those nations of similar size in-region. However, its doctrine aims to make up for the deficiency in size through Manoeuvre Warfare, a flexible approach to command, integration of cutting-edge technology and combined arms at all levels, and ensuring that it is one of the most technologically advanced and well-equipped militaries, pound-for-pound.

Primary Doctrine

The Royal Army's doctrine relies on combating the hostile force at all levels of organisation, simultaneously with all aspects of combined arms: Armour, Artillery, Infantry, Combat Support, and closely integrated Air Force support. The integration of these different combat arms is expected to occur in the most flexible manner, at the lowest organisational level possible. The Manoeuvrist Approach and Mission Command are the two main concepts of the Kouralian Doctrine. The former is described in ADP-2010 (the most recent Army Doctrinal Publication) as an 'indirect approach which emphasises understanding and targeting the conceptual and moral components of an adversary’s fighting power as well as attacking the physical component. It concentrates on seizing the initiative and applying strength against weakness and vulnerability, while protecting the same on our own side. The contemporary Manoeuvrist Approach requires a certain attitude of mind, practical knowledge and a philosophy of command that promotes initiative.' The 'attitude of mind', 'practical knowledge' and 'philosophy of command' mentioned in ADP-2010 are the 'Mission Command' section of Kouralian Doctrine. This is to say a 'centralised intent, and decentralised execution,' requiring individuals and collective formations at all levels of committed forces to be trained and capable of acting on their own initiative, often with much greater levels of independence than would normally be allowed. Rather than a commander giving direct and rigid orders, the main aim of the command structure is to provide unity of intent, with each subordinate commander having a strong idea of what objective their +1 intends to accomplish along with having been assigned a force and task to effect the completion of that objective.

While the Kouralian military does deploy in Divisions its main operational unit is the Legion - and its main fighting unit is the Battlegroup. This is central to the concept of Mission Command, as in addition to the usual Legion signals unit, the Legion is in possession of a Tactical Headquarters to coordinate four Battlegroups. Each Battlegroup is an adhoc formation of Company-level units from within the Legion assigned according to task, geography and other factors. For example, a Battlegroup optimised for urban warfare may consist of an Armoured Squadron and two Companies of Mechanised Infantry with devolved Fire Support Assets. At an even lower level, each Company-level formation is usually equipped with sufficient signals equipment to operate as a Cohort-level command centre, ensuring that any subordinate unit can take control in the event of serious disruption to command and control echelons. The only places Battlegroups are not found are in the Light, Amphibious and Airborne Legions, where the absence of Armoured units is seen as making it less necessary to be able to split the Legion up along these lines.

Organisation

The Kouralian Army uses a Regimental System where the battalion-level units (termed 'Cohorts') are administratively part of distinct Regiments, usually formed on geographic grounds. They are then organised for battle in 'Legions', of roughly 3-4 combat Cohorts and a number of support and service support elements. An example of this is the Loyal East Chyafran Regiment which has three battalions all recruited from the same area, one of which is deployed in the 5th Armoured Legion, one of which in the 15th Mountain Legion, and one of which is deployed in the 42nd Legion.

Major Formations

In the Kouralian Army, Legions and Divisions are permanent formations led by Legates and Vice-Generals to which a cohort will belong permanently. While soldiers will be 'badged' to a Regiment, the cohorts of a given regiment will be divided up in a Division. They will share this Division with a few other thematically similar units (e.g. rifle regiments in a 'Light Division'), and soldiers may be re-badged to other units in this Division as appropriate. This is because casualties in a single cohort or regiment may be difficult to predict, whereas casualties in a division are easier to predict short of a catastrophe.

Uniform

File:Kouralian Commando Uniform.png

Comparison between the regular and commando service uniforms, as worn by Naval Commandos.

The Royal Army divides its uniform up into a set of 'Numbers', indicating their precedence relative to one another. They are all very similar, but different units will alter their uniforms with different additions as nods to tradition and the like to distinguish themselves from their peers.

• No.1 Dress: Ceremonial Dress is the fanciest uniform worn by the Royal Army. It regularly includes polished helmets and breastplates, swords or other weapons, and hearkens back to a blend of the uniforms of the ancient Kouralian military and more recent uniforms.
• No.2 Dress: Service Dress is the most formal uniform worn on a regular basis. It consists of bulled dress shoes, dress trousers, shirt and tie, and tunic worn with regimental headdress or service peaked cap. Rank is worn on the sleeves or on the shoulder with fully metaled insignia, along with full medals and ribbons. No.2A Dress indicates the wearing of swords, whereas No.2B indicates otherwise.
• No.3 Dress: Barracks Dress is the day-to-day uniform worn by soldiers who are not engaged in physical activities (e.g. clerical staff working on the mainland). It consists of bulled dress shoes or boots, dress trousers, shirt and tie, and a jersey heavy wool jumper worn with regimental headdress. Rank is worn on shoulder rank slides with embroidered insignia. No.3A is the 'temperate' uniform as described above, while No.3B is the 'tropical' uniform worn without the tie or wool jumper, and with the appropriate alterations to wear of the now-short sleeved shirt. No.3C Dress is used by the Military Police, and consists of the appropriate temperate/tropical uniform, but with full belt kit and stab-proof vest for patrol in Kouralia.
• No.4 Dress: Utility Dress is the basic uniform of the Royal Army. It consists of boots, combat trousers, undershirt, and combat shirt or smock depending on the weather, worn with regimental headdress. No.4A is as above, and is employed on base etc. No.4B is the standard combat uniform and includes body armour, webbing, helmet, and a full combat load. No.4C is as 4B, but with full NBC gear worn as well.

Regimental Headdress

The Regimental Headdress is a source of pride for many units, and enables men to instantly identify who is and isn't a member of their regiment. Each beret consists of two pieces of equipment, a cap badge and a beret. The beret is moulded to fit the head with the metal-backed cap-badge sitting just above and to the left of the left eye, while the fold goes down the right side of the head. These berets come in different colours depending on the unit. The base colour is dark blue, with a number of deviations from this:

• The Infantry wear a scarlet beret
• The Cavalry wear a khaki beret
• Service Police wear a 'police blue' beret
• Special Forces wear an emerald grey beret
• Expeditionary Forces wear a claret beret
• Airborne Forces wear a white beret

There are many other beret colours which are worn by other units, for example rifle green by rifle regiments. The only regiment to not wear a beret is the Citadel Guard who wear a white and gold field service cap. This beret is likely adorned with at least one of two accessories. All regiments or service arms have their own cap badge which is worn with regimental headdress and acts like a logo. This cap badge may be embroidered fabric, though it is usually bronze, gold, or silver metal and may be enameled.

File:Kour Army Beret.jpg

Officer Cadet wearing a beret.

The second adornment is called a 'tombstone' and consists of an appropriately shaped piece of fabric backing applied to the beret behind the cap badge. This usually indicates one's qualification to wear multiple cap badges, for example those who were Air Force or Naval personnel, or Commandos prior to becoming special forces retain a tombstone of the appropriate regiment's beret colour behind the badge on their new emerald grey beret.

Cross-Unit Dress

When soldiers of one unit transfer to another, they may retain some aspects of the uniform from their previous formation. For example, should a soldier from the Naval Commandos join the Swimmer-Canoeist Regiment then they will retain the Naval Commando Shoulder Arch, but will retain the claret of the Naval Commando beret in a tombstone behind the beret. If/When they return to their past unit, they will retain the emerald grey of the special forces beret, though will return to the old cap badge. Those who are promoted out of a unit (e.g. a Special Forces officer who is eventually appointed to a General Officer position outside of STRIKE Command will retain his beret, cap badge, and uniform hue).

Decorations and Adornments

There are a number of different decoration classes applied to the Royal Army uniform that are awarded by either the Army or the wider government to recognise acts that merit them.

• Rank Insignia are worn on flashes for all dress numbers except for Nos.1 and 2. On these uniforms the rank insignia is either embroidered and sewn onto the sleeve in the case of enlisted ranks, or is made of individually attached metal components attached to the shoulder for commissioned ranks. The metal of rank insignia can be white metal, yellow metal, or a dark bronze metal depending on the unit in question.
• Tactical Recognition Flashes are small coloured patches worn on the right sleeves of No.4 uniforms by certain units. They indicate the corps or regiment of the relevant unit and vary from simple two-tone fields to text and multi-element heraldic designs. They are supplemented by Drop Zone Flashes on the left sleeve for units in each airborne brigade.
• Lapel Tags are small badges worn on the lapels of one's No.2 Dress. For most soldiers and officers these are an indication of the unit they serve with, and are a simplified and often smaller representation of the cap badge. However, the Staff Tags are scarlet and gold badges worn by officers in a staff capacity to indicate their separation from the regular military command structure.
• Aiguillettes are ornamental braided gold cords with decorative metal tips, often made of gold wire, worn on the right shoulder. They come in three degrees of extravagance: Royal Aiguillettes are worn by Lords of War, honorary physicians, honorary chaplains, honorary surgeons and aides-de-camp to the sovereign, and equerries to members of the Royal Family. Board Aiguillettes are less ornamental, and are made up of a mix of gold and scarlet cord. They are worn by other members of the relevant Service boards and the heads of Combatant Commands, and by the personal staffs of Shire Governors. Staff Aiguillettes are even less ornamental, and are again made of gold and scarlet cord. They are worn on the right shoulder by attaches, assistants, and aides de camp as prescribed by uniform regulations.
• Belts are made of leather, coloured either white, brown, or black. Enlisted personnel wear simply a belt, while commissioned officers wear a sam-browne belt regardless as to whether the sword is to be worn.
• Sashes are worn either to denote membership of a chivalrous order, or as part of uniform. Those denoting membership of a chivalrous order are worn from the right shoulder down to the left hip, while those worn as part of uniform (most commonly the scarlet sash worn by Senior Non-Commissioned Officers or the gold sash worn to indicate attachment to the Royal Household) is worn from the left to the right.
• Medals are worn in full, in ribbon, or in miniature. They are usually worn in full in Nos.1 and 2 dress uniforms, though those who wear No.2 as a standard working uniform (e.g. senior staff positions such as the Count Martial) may wear ribbons with them. They are worn in ribbon in No.3, and potentially in No.4 dress - though the use of No.4 Dress for parading purposes is severely discouraged. They can be worn in miniature in civilian formalwear or Nos.1 or 2 uniform when worn for important social events such as a state dinner.
• Shoulder Tabs are worn in varying patterns and hues at the top of the arms at the shoulder in Nos.2 to 4 dress. They indicate the completion of a certain training course, and are retained regardless of further transfer or assignment for the length of one's career. Only the most prestigious three are worn at any one time. In order of precedence, they are:
  • Royal Master-Musketeer, indicates one's position in the top hundred in the annual Royal Match shooting competition. There is no requirement to requalify annually.
  • Principal Operator, indicating one's status as having successfully completed the STRIKE Command's Special Forces Selection and completing training for a particular regiment. They read 'Mounted Grenadier', 'Nemean Ranger', and 'Swimmer-Canoeist' respectively.
  • Commando, indicating one's status as having completed the relevant training course: they read 'Army Commando', 'Naval Commando', and 'Commando Raider' respectively.
  • Sapper, indicating one's completion of the Combat Sapper Leadership Cadre for Junior Officers and NCOs.
  • Citadel Guard, indicating that one has completed the Citadel Guard's training programme.
  • Auxiliary Legionnaire, indicating that one has completed the enlisted training for the foreign-sourced Auxiliary Force.
• Specialist Skill Badges are worn usually on the upper arms at the mid-humerus, below Shoulder Tabs and above any enlisted rank insignia in Nos.2 and 3 Dress, and above the TRF on the right arm in No.4 Dress. They are worn for so long as one holds the relevant position, and indicate a particular specialist skill, for example an Infantry Combat Assault Pioneer has one, as do enlisted Ammunition Technicians and Commissioned Ammunition Technical Officers of the Royal Ordinance Corps. Expeditionary Troops and Airborne troops are authorised to wear ones (respectively an anchor fouled by two bayonets, and a flaming sword) to indicate that distinction, between any other SSB and their Shoulder Tab. Aside from this, only one is worn at a time.
• Service Bars are worn on the lower arm above the wrist in Nos.1 and 2 uniform, and are gold, silver, or 'pale'. One is awarded for wear following each deployment. a gold award is made for any overseas combat/wartime deployment of six months. A silver award is made for any wartime deployment of six months in Kouralia, or overseas but not entailing combat. A 'pale award' is simply a lighter embroidered shade of the uniform's hue rather than a full-metal pin attached to the arm, and is made for any overseas combat/wartime deployment of under six months. As an example, as of 2017 the Kouralian Crown Princess has one Gold, one Silver, and two pale.

Equipment

Equipment of the Royal Kouralian Army

The Order of Precedence

The 'Order of Precedence' lists the military units to a Regimental level in their nominal order of importance to the crown. The order or precedence determines the order of units in any march, with the highest precedent unit being at the head of the march, or the Right of a parade, going down to the rear and left at the lowest unit.

• Royal Household Troops
• Cavalry Corps
• Infantry Corps
  • Guard Infantry
  • Infantry of the Line
  • Commando Corps
  • Foreign Force
• Artillery Corps
  • Guard Artillery
  • Horse Artillery
  • Field Artillery
  • Garrison Artillery
  • Other Artillery Regiments
• Royal Engineers
• Army Medical Corps
• Signals Corps
• Land Transport Corps
• Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
• Army Intelligence Corps
• Adjutant General's Corps
• Army Training Corps
  • Royal School of Musketry
  • The Royal Academies
  • Physical Training Corps
• Army Band Service