Public Force (Montecara)

Public Force
Fòrça pùblica
File:MontecaraCoA.png
Leadership
Commander-in-Chief	Colegio
Secretary of Defense and Security	Tulio Brucàt
Chief of Defense	Captain-General Ermàn Manfrìn
Personnel
Military age	17 years of age
Conscription	17 years of age, 24-month period
Active personnel	5,655 (excluding Dragòni) Armàda: 1,897 Brigàda: 3,216 Dragòni: 2,439
Reserve personnel	16,875
Expenditure
Budget	NSD 4.21 billion
Percent of GDP	2.40% (2017)

The Public Force (Fòrça pùblica) is the military of Montecara. It consists of an integrated command structure with three specialized branches: the Brigàda Montecarà (land forces), Armàda (navy), and Dragòni (gendarmerie).

The military is a serious object of the Montecaran government's concern given its history of conflict with its neighbors and highly strategic location. Exact defense plans are classified, but it is widely known that Montecara's military strategy is based first on deterrence and second on organized resistance to invasion. Deterrence rests on making it clear that the attacking force would suffer unacceptable casualties in seeking to capture Montecara's small territory. Failing this, the goal of resistance is to deny the enemy use of the nation's strategic assets and exhaust its will to fight.

Montecara engages in defense cooperation with the other members of the Euclean defense community. Allied ships make regular calls at the Port of Montecara, and the state is de-facto protected by the Euclean Community nuclear umbrella.

Organization and manpower

The order of battle diagram for the Montecaran armed forces

Standard of the Brigàda Montecarà

Montecara practices conscription for a term of two years beginning at age 17 for able-bodied citizens and permanent residents, male and female. University-bound secondary-school students may defer their enlistment until their studies are completed, usually at age 19. Upon reaching service age, new recruits report to the Citadel of Montecara and take a battery of physical and academic tests. Based on their results, they may be assigned to a remedial physical fitness course or move directly on to recruit training. The basic training course lasts 12 weeks, during which recruits learn the rudiments of military skills and discipline. Once a conscript's two-year service is complete, he or she is considered a qualified soldier and remains on the reserve list until reaching the age of 40 (for other ranks) or 45 (for officers).

While conscription is theoretically universal, in reality less than 20% of the pool of potential recruits is actually called to serve. Most young people go on to study at university or a technical academy rather than serving in the military, and those that are conscripted are generally voluntary.

Armàda

File:MontecaraRoundel.png

Montecaran military aircraft roundel

File:MC-Ensign.png

Ensign of the Armàda

The Armàda is the seaborne and airborne component of the Força pùblica. It is responsible for defending Montecara's territorial waters and exclusive sector in accordance with national and international law. It accordingly conducts operations to safeguard Montecaran sovereignty and the safety of its territory and resources, as well as to support allied forces, search and rescue operations, and maritime law enforcement. The Armàda is an inshore constabulary capable of maritime policing confined well within the state's exclusive sector. The Secretariat of Defense and Security describes its role as a "green-water navy" dedicated to the defense of the state and its immediate territorial waters. It is an entirely professional, volunteer force, and nearly all of its personnel are skilled workers who have highly specialized duties.

The Armàda includes a company-sized formation of naval infantry led by a sopracomito (an officer of grade O-3).

History

The historic Arsenàl

Montecara was historically one of the most powerful seagoing states in the world. At its peak around 1500, the Montecaran Navy boasted over 3,000 vessels which were turned out on an industrial scale by its Arsenàl, a fortress and shipbuilding factory that could produce up to a ship a day when working at full capacity. Montecarans were masters of the sail-and-oar ship, basing their designs on naval architecture with a history that stretched back to the Solarian Republic. These vessels, highly maneuverable and with a shallow draft, were ideally suited to navigating the Solarian Sea and allowed Montecarans to acquire far-flung territory as part of their overseas possessions, the Stado Ultramarìn.

Dragòni

The Corpo dei Dragòni (Montecaran, Corps of Dragoons), commonly referred to simply as the Dragòni, is a gendarmerie force responsible for armed police duties. The Dragòni are approximately equal to a small brigade or large regiment in size; their designation as a corps is for reasons of tradition and history. The overall commander is a colonel with pay grade O-6.

History

Captain of the Dragòni, 1765

There had long been a need for patrols in Montecara's hinterland to combat tax evasion and common crime. The Dragòni were established by Doxe Coràdo Muràca in 1642 to fulfill these needs. They were intended as a form of mounted infantry that would use their mounts to reach distant villages that would otherwise be beyond the routine reach of the state. Unfortunately for the citizens they patrolled, the Dragòni quickly earned a reputation for heavy-handed policing and for engaging in criminal behavior themselves, helping themselves to wine and liquor from inns and farms and abusing isolated women. Efforts by the Doxe and state apparatus to instill discipline were only occasionally successful, but their dread reputation had its positive side as well. The most unruly members of the corps found themselves shipped off to the outlands of the Stado Ultramarìn on colonial duty, where their fearsome ways proved useful for keeping locals in check.

The Dragòni have long had a reputation for exercising a reactionary political influence and for being one of the most scandal-plagued organs of the Montecaran state. Nevertheless, they remain an integral component of the state security apparatus which few have challenged successfully.

Scuadròn di Coraçièri

Troops of the Coraçièri on parade

The elite bodyguard unit of the Dragòni is the Scuadròn di Coraçièri (Montecaran, Squadron of Cuirassiers). It consists of approximately 300 elite dragoons tasked with protecting the most important people and buildings in Montecara. They are known for their brass helmets and breastplates as well as their strength and height, and can be seen in the background at most major state events.

Ranks

Officers

	O‑(D)	O‑1	O‑2	O‑3	O‑4	O‑5	O‑6	O‑7	O‑8	O‑9	O‑10
Armàda	Aspirant Aspirànt	Sub-lieutenant Subtenènt	Lieutenant Tenènt	Sopracomito Sopracomito	No equivalent	Vice-Captain Vicecaptàn	Captain Captàn	Captain-General Captàn-xenera	No equivalent
Brigàda & Dragòni	Aspirant Aspirànt	Sub-lieutenant Subtenènt	Lieutenant Tenènt	Captain Captàn	Major Maxòr	Lieutenant-Colonel Coronèl-tenènt	Colonel Coronèl	Captain-General Captàn-xenera

Enlisted

	E-1	E-2	E-3	E-4	E-5	E-6	E-7	E-8	E-9
Armàda	Recruit Novelìn	Sailor Marinèr	Chosen sailor Marinèr xelto	No equivalent	Master Màstro	Chosen master Màstro xelto	Chief master Capomàstro	No equivalent
	No insignia
Brigàda & Dragòni	Recruit Novelìn	Private Soldàt or Dragòn	Corporal Caporàl	Chosen corporal Caporàl xelto	Sergeant Sergènt	Chosen sergeant Sergènt xelto	Master sergeant Sergènt màstro
	No insignia	No insignia

Equipment

Vehicles

Type	Image	Role	Quantity	Year acquired
Armored fighting vehicles
Général BC 40 T		Infantry fighting vehicle
Fonan E2		Light armored car
Autonomous vehicles
DELFIN		Mine countermeasures / Search and rescue	1 in service	2018
ISE Aigle		Unmanned aerial vehicle	1 system (4 drones) in service
Boats
GL boat		Fast boat / Landing craft	4 in service	2004
Fixed-wing aircraft
IFO Aerocamio		Maritime patrol aircraft / Military transport aircraft	3 in service
Altamecanica Atlante		Maritime patrol aircraft / Military transport aircraft	1 in service
Piàvo 180		Maritime patrol aircraft / VIP transport	1 in service
RUI T-5		Basic trainer	10 in service
Ground utility vehicles
Éclair Ascension		Light utility vehicle
Éclair M 150		Heavy cargo truck
Helicopters
HdF 90		Anti-submarine warfare	6 in service
Agùst A109		Military utility helicopter	2 in service

Artillery

Type	Image	Role	Quantity	Year acquired
Mortars
Mortier Tr. 51		107 mm mortar
Mortier Tr. 78		60 mm mortar
Towed artillery
Obusier Tr. 75		105 mm howitzer	6 in service
Obusier Tr. 205		155 mm howitzer	4 in service
Naval artillery
Autotorexìn 13 cm		Coastal artillery	6 in service	1984
MA5		Truck-mounted anti-ship missile system	5 in service	2009

Ships

Class	Image	Ships	Displacement (tonnes)	Commissioned
Corvettes (1 in service)
Triton		ASM Tritòn	1,285	1995
Patrol vessels (6 in service)
Ligio		ASM Ligio ASM Çenturio ASM Pilo ASM Gladio ASM Lòrica ASM Òptio	390	1993-1996
Minehunters (2 in service)
Xile		ASM Xile ASM Sirèna	620	1997
Research vessels (1 in service)
Nereida		ASM Nereida	433	2004
Tugboats (4 in service)
Bigorno		ASM Bigorno ASM Ciriped ASM Anèmone ASM Nautìl	412	1987-1989
Transport ships (2 in service)
Cerèra		ASM Cerèra ASM Convèctor	631	1989
Training ships (1 in service)
Xeno		ASM Xeno	1,341	1935

Small arms

Model	Image	Type	Caliber	Notes
Handguns
ARL P16		Pistol	5.7×28mm	Standard-issue pistol
Rifles
ARL C2		Assault rifle	5.56×45mm	Standard-issue rifle
ARL F9 TIR		Battle rifle	7.62×51mm	Former standard-issue rifle, many still in stock
ARS-STORM	File:Scar L Standard.jpg	Assault rifle	5.56×45mm	In use by select units
ARS SSV-05		Sniper rifle	8.6×70mm or 8.58×70mm
Submachine guns
ARL P.220		General-purpose submachine gun	9×19mm
Machine guns
ARS LMG-40		General-purpose machine gun	7.62×51mm
ARS TMG-50		Heavy machine gun	12.7×99mm	Used on vehicles and emplacements
Shotguns
Diegennis M/02		Shotgun	12 gauge
Anti-tank and anti-air weapons
NVF PVV-19	File:AT-4Launcher.jpeg	Anti-tank weapon	84 mm
MACP-3		Man-portable air-defense system