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Messidorian Armed Forces
Forces Armées du Messidor
Iɣskrbiln n Mgrawi
File:Messidor Army Emblem.png File:Messidor Naval Jack.png File:Messidor Roundel.png
Roundels of the Messidorian Army Corps, Navy Corps, and Air Corps
Founded1839; 185 years ago (1839)
Service branchesFile:Messidor Army Emblem.png Messidorian Army Corps
File:Messidor Naval Jack.png Messidorian Navy Corps
File:Messidor Roundel.png Messidorian Air Corps
Leadership
President of the UnionYolande-Minerve Saverne
Commissioned ChairpersonGeneral Rezki Tinifsan
Personnel
Military age18-55
ConscriptionVoluntary service only
Active personnel102,800 total:
Army Corps: 55,200
Navy Corps: 31,500
Air Corps: 16,100

The Messidorian Armed Forces (Audonic: Forces Armées du Messidor, Tamazight: Iɣskrbiln n Mgrawi) is the unified military forces of the Messidor Union. Each element of land, sea, and air forces are incorporated as a corps, the Army Corps, Navy Corps, and Air Corps, respectively. Service is voluntary and the Army Corps and Navy Corps do not have active reserves. The Air Corps retains a reserve fleet which is theoretically filled by commercial pilots who have signed on as reservists.

The Messidorian Armed Forces are headed by the Directorate of Defence and the Armed Forces Executive Committee. The Director of Defence is appointed by the President of the Union and is accountable to the Workers' Congress and the civilian population of the Messidor Union more broadly. The Armed Forces Executive Committee is a council of elected officers and the enlisted Corps Sergeant Majors or Corps Chief of each corps.

History

The Messidorian Army and Navy Corps were founded in 1839, 8 years after the founding of the Messidor Union. The formation of a standing military was a contentious issue among the various syndicates who had originally called to rely upon civil militias organized at a local level rather than a central military. After the loss of northern Tafriqt in 1833, the notion that such a force could effectively protect the Union was effectively dispelled, though it took a further 6 years before the exact details of the Messidorian Armed Forces would be determined. From the outset, the Army and Navy Corps were small, professional, volunteer forces which were organized under a federal union. Merovian and later Aɣmatian factories ensured that they were well-equipped and supplied, though the forces established an enduring reputation of poor discipline. Despite their reputation, the first major deployment of the Messidorian Army Corps in the Annexation of the Timna Strip in 1919 was a great success. The Messidorian Navy Corps served nearly the entirety of its first century and a half of existence as a patrol and deterrence fleet for ships making the transit across the Periclean Sea. During the Reannexation of Tafriqt in 1950-51, the Navy Corps ran blockades around the coast of Tafriqt and prevented any seaborne assault. They also saw major surface combat during the Fourth West Scipian War. The Messidorian Air Corps was founded in 1920 and rounded out the three branches. Elements of the Messidorian intelligence services are also incorporated into the armed forces, specifically the Naval Infantry Brigade of the Army Corps, which conducts counter-intelligence, special reconnaissance, and direct intervention missions.

Structure

The structure of the Messidorian Armed Forces is highly unusual for most nations but ultimately consistent with the Union's own logic. While elsewhere officers are trained and awarded commission and a strict military hierarchy is followed, each unit level of the Messidorian Armed Forces elect their commanders, i.e.: an infantry section elects its sergeant, a ship elects its captain, and the general staff is elected by its branch of service. Elibigilty for commissioned roles is often subject to criteria of education or seniority. It is this particular element of the armed forces' structure that bewilders more disciplined military forces in the world. For their part, officers and enlisted members of the Messidorian Armed Forces hold that the system creates a greater sense of camaradery and investment in the service.

The combined armed forces is overseen by the Directorate of Defence Armed Forces Committee. The committee is chaired by the most senior of the elected members who are commanders of each of the three branches. The Director of Defence is also a member of the committee. The present chairperson of the committee is General Rezki Tinifsan. Below the committee each branch has its own general's staff composed of the commanders of its subgroups and their staffs.

The Army Corps is composed of twenty regiments and an air component divided among two divisions: one based in Aɣmatia and the other in Merovia. At an operational level the regiments are organized into 8 brigades; 4 for each division. While conscription is unconstitutional in the Messidor Union, additional volunteer regiments can be raised in emergencies. There is no standing reservist force in the Army Corps.

The Navy Corps operates under a single unified fleet - the Periclean Fleet. The formal organization of the fleet is much looser than the Army Corps and most of the officers maintain the rank of "Captain", taking on command of larger formations only for the duration of a particular deployment. Presently, the Navy Corps has a few active deployments in the Periclean protecting the corridor between Merovia and Aɣmatia.

The Air Corps has two air divisions which are not strictly organized along geographic lines. Each division has 5 wings which may have as many as 72 aircraft each or as few as 15 according to the wing's role. Unlike both the Army Corps and the Navy Corps, the Air Corps has 6 air reserve squadrons which fly the dated but not yet obsolete AAB-F32/B3 Tiara fighter aircraft.

Branches of service

Messidorian Army Corps

The Messidorian Army Corps counts over 55,200 members across two divisions; one based in Merovia and the other in Aɣmatia. The Army Corps is also supported by a number of employees and government workers. Founded in 1839, the Army Corps began as an organizing body for many armed militias across the Union. By the 1850s, the Army Corps developed into a professional fighting force. The last militia forces were disbanded or organized into professional reserves by the early 20th century.

Despite the population gap between Aɣmatia and Merovia, Army Corps personnel are distributed relatively equally between the two nations. The majority of training is conducted in southern Aɣmatia, but soldiers are trained in multiple environments. The forces of the Army Corps count twenty-two regiments. Regiments are divided into brigade groups at an operational level. Messidorian brigades are relatively large, formed typically of an armoured regiment paired with an infantry regiment plus supporting elements.

Equipment

Model Image Origin Type Notes
CC-T84B2
6B47 helmet - InnovationDay2013part1-56.jpg
 Messidor Helmet
JC-T85B1
ODFEquipment BVest3.jpg
 Messidor Combat vest
PC-T66/B
PC-T66/V
CADPAT Arid Region.jpg
 Messidor Camouflage In both desert tan and temperate olive

Arms

Model Image Origin Type Calibre Notes
Small arms
PA-M16/A1
Isque
SIG P210 1sr series IMG 3086.jpg
 Messidor Pistol 10×25mm Standard service pistol
FA-M45/D2
Rz Awl
Rifles FAMAS.jpg
 Messidor Assault rifle 8×35mm Standard service rifle
FR-X(O-NO)23/B3
Asmawi
FN Herstal T48.jpg
 North Ottonia
 Ostrozava
Battle rifle 8×57mm Former service rifle, in reserve
FR-M05/C1
Lafliš
FRF2 lunette Schrome.jpg
 Messidor Precision rifle 8×57mm Standard precision rifle
PM-M32/B1
Imik
MP-L WALTHER 9MM.jpg
 Messidor Submachine gun 10×25mm
FM-XO28/A3
Stulskabus 8
ODFEquipment MG3.png
 North Ottonia Medium machine gun 8×57mm Section support weapon and vehicle-mounted machine gun
FM-M03/A3
Stulskabus 13
 Messidor Heavy machine gun 13×96mm Vehicle-mounted machine gun
FRCM-M70/A1
PGM Hecate.jpg
 Messidor Anti-matériel rifle 13×96mm In limited use with special forces
MP-M54/A2
ERYX-2ndFrInReg 2.jpg
 Messidor Portable ATGM launcher 135mm
LG-M58/A1
Issoufir
LGI entrainement.jpg
 Messidor Grenade mortar 50mm
G-XNO20/A1
Dikra
DM51 2 noBG.png
 North Ottonia Hand grenade
Mle 5/8
MAS Modèle 36.jpg
 Messidor Bolt-action rifle 7.5×57mm Former service rifle, in ceremonial use, conversion to precision rifles

Vehicles

Model Image Origin Type Armament Notes
Armoured vehicles
CB-A77/A2
Mirage
"Leopard" (22409949966) (cropped).jpg
 Messidor
 Ostrozava
 North Ottonia
 Tsurushima
Third generation main battle tank
  • 1 × 120mm cannon
  • 2 × 8mm machine gun
Co-developed with the Ostrozavan OPUv.78 series, the North Ottonian M15/VII series, and the Tsurushiman Type 90
CB-A20/C3
Lancier
AMX-32 mg 7756.jpg
 Messidor Second generation main battle tank
  • 1 × 105mm cannon
  • 1 × 25mm autocannon
  • 1 × 8mm machine gun
CS-A20/F2
Arbaléte
BMPT at Engineering Technologies 2012 (8).jpg
 Messidor Fire support vehicle
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
  • 4 × ATGM launchers
  • 2 × 50mm grenade launchers
  • 1 × 13mm machine gun
  • 1 × 8mm machine gun
VCI-A42/A3
Baɣu
Vehicles at 1st Cavalry Division Museum 25.jpg
 Messidor Infantry fighting vehicle
  • 1 × 25mm autocannon
  • 1 × 8mm machine gun
VRR-A42/B1
Basset
AMX-10 RC, nouvelles couleurs Armée de terre (14 juillet 2021) (2).jpg
 Messidor Reconnaissance vehicle
  • 1 × 105mm cannon
  • 1 × 13mm machine gun
  • 1 × 8mm machine gun
VRR wheeled variant, VRC tracked variant
TB-A90/A1
Forteresse
Mack Bastion APC UPDF.jpg
 Messidor Armoured personnel carrier
  • 1 × 13mm machine gun
Artillery
CA-A20/D1
Martel
AuF1 of Saudi Arabia.JPEG
 Messidor Self-propelled howtizer
  • 1 × 155mm howitzer
  • 1 × 13mm machine gun
CA-A20/E2
Zizouar
Roland sobre chasis AMX-30, vista lateral izquierda.jpg
 Messidor Self-propelled SAM platform
  • 2 × SAM launchers
CA-A56/A2
Bernache
SVLR M-87 Orkan.jpg
 Messidor Self-propelled rocket artillery
  • 12 × 262 mm rocket tubes
OC-M21/B1
Bélier
M-1950-beyt-hatotchan-2.jpg
 Messidor Towed howitzer
  • 1 × 155mm howitzer
Light vehicles
CU-C56/A1
Dromadaire
FAP 1318 BDS-AV 01.jpg
 Messidor Utility, transport, and cargo vehicles
CU-XT53/A1
Linx
Technamm Masstech French Army (Toyota Land Cruiser HZJ76).jpg
 Tsurushima Utility and transport vehicle Converted civilian vehicle
Aircraft
HU-F34/A3
Félin
A Royal Air Force Puma helicopter over the English countryside.jpg
 Messidor Utility helicopter
HL-F35/A2
Frelon
SA321 Super Frélon (cropped).jpg
 Messidor Heavy airlift helicopter
AU-F51/A1
Cachalot
A310MRTT.jpg
 Messidor Airlift/refueling plane Converted civilian aircraft

Messidorian Navy Corps

The Messidorian Navy Corps was formally established in 1839 and, unlike the Army Corps, had no effective predecessor. The first warships in 50 years were laid down in Aɣmatia shortly after. At present, the Navy Corps has 75 active warships in addition to several support vessels. The Periclean Fleet, the largest organizational unit of the corps, is headquartered in Port Isadore in Merovia, but the Union's shipbuilding industry is still largely based on Aɣmatia's coasts. Despite being generally restricted to the Periclean, the Navy Corps is effectively a blue water navy.

Vessels in active service

Class Image Role Displacement
(standard)
Armament Number in service Notes
Yu'tanuɣi-class amphibious assault ship
Yu'tanuɣi-class amphibious assault ship.png
Amphibious assault ship 16,500 tons
  • 4 × 25mm autocannons
  • 4 × 13mm machine guns
  • 2 × 8mm machine guns
  • 2 × 6-canister SAM batteries
  • 6 × helipads
3 Carries up to 16 helicopters, 42 armoured vehicles,
900 infantry, and
2 Jran-class landing craft
Tamdda-class destroyer
Tamdda-class destroyer.png
Guided-missile destroyer 7,500 tons
  • 1 × 100mm naval gun
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
  • 8 × Exocet MM40 Block 3C
  • 1 × 64-cell VLS battery
  • 2 × 6-canister SAM batteries
  • 4 × 325mm torpedo tubes
  • 2 × helipads
4 Carries two HAS-F55/B1 Dauphin helicopters
Tmassa II-class frigate
Tmassa II-class frigate.png
Anti-submarine frigate 3,200 tons
  • 1 × 100mm naval gun
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
  • 8 × Exocet MM40 Block 3C
  • 1 × 16-cell VLS battery
  • 1 × 4-canister SAM battery
  • 4 × 533mm torpedo tubes
  • 1 × helipad
12 Carries an HAS-F55/B1 Dauphin helicopter
Tmassa I-class frigate
Tmassa I-class frigate.png
General-purpose frigate 3,200 tons
  • 1 × 100mm naval gun
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
  • 8 × Exocet MM40 Block 2
  • 2 × 6-canister SAM batteries
  • 4 × 533mm torpedo tubes
  • 1 × helipad
4 Carries an HAS-F55/B1 Dauphin helicopter
Bri-class corvette
Bri-class corvette.png
Corvette 1,100 tons
  • 1 × 100mm naval gun
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
  • 2 × Exocet MM38
  • 1 × 6-canister ASW battery
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
  • 4 × 13mm machine guns
  • 4 × fixed torpedo catapults
16
Tillas-class submarine
Tillas-class submarine.png
Attack submarine 1,800 tons
  • 6 × 533mm torpedo tubes
  • 8 × Exocet SM39
8
Tuhan-class patrol vessel
Tuhan-class patrol vessel.png
Patrol vessel 230 tons
  • 1 × 100mm naval gun
  • 1 × 25mm autocannons
  • 4 × Exocet MM38
10
Mintirzi-class minehunter
Mintirzi-class minehunter.png
Minehunter 570 tons
  • 1 × 25mm autocannon
  • 2 × 13mm machine guns
  • 2 × 8mm machine guns
10
Awɣaman-class replenishment ship
Awɣaman-class replenishment ship.png
Replenishment ship 7,700 tons
  • 1 × 25mm autocannon
  • 4 × 13mm machine guns
  • 3 × 6-canister SAM batteries
  • 1 helipad
4
Zrskradaln-class surveillance ship
Zrskradaln-class surveillance ship.png
Spy ship 3,100 tons
  • 2 × 13mm machine guns
4
Jran-class landing craft
''Jran''-class landing craft.png
Landing craft 290 tons
  • 2 × 25mm autocannons
6
HU-F34/B1
Félin
USS Benfold Flight Operations (cropped).jpg
Utility helicopter N/A 30 Based on the HU-F34/A3 helicopter
HL-F35/A2
Frelon
SA321 Super Frélon (cropped).jpg
Heavy airlift helicopter N/A 8
HAS-F55/B1
Dauphin
US Navy 081116-N-4236E-158 An AS-565MB Panther conducts deck landing qualifications with the multi-purpose amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7).jpg
Anti-submarine helicopter N/A
  • 1 × 25mm autocannon
  • 4 × anti-submarine torpedoes
36
APM-F30/C1
Périclésienne
Atlantic - RIAT 2006 (2457788396).jpg
Maritime patrol aircraft N/A
  • 2 × Exocet AM39
  • 6 × anti-submarine torpedoes
11

Messidorian Air Corps

The most recent branch of the Messidorian Armed Forces is the Messidorian Air Corps. Founded in 1920 after the Annexation of the Timna Strip, the Air Corps primarily provided aerial reconnaissance. Over the next few decades, the role and capabilities of military aircraft rapidly evolved. At present, the Air Corps is the only branch of service to maintain an active reserve force, owing in part to the amount of training required to operate and maintain a fleet of aircraft. The Air Corps is organized across two wings and includes several hundred aircraft. Any aircraft seconded to the Army or Navy Corps are provided and operated by the Air Corps. In addition to its military roles, the Air Corps also provides search and rescue and emergency airlift services. Many of these additional functions are performed by reservist members.

Aircraft in active service

Model Image Origin Type Notes
Ava 70
MU Roundel Mirage 4000.png
 Messidor Multi-role fighter
AAB-F47/B3
Tiara
Mirage 2000C in-flight 2 (cropped).jpg
 Messidor Multi-role fighter In use for training and reserve squadrons
ABT-F47/A3
Ašibi
Mirage 2000D (cropped).jpg
 Messidor Tactical bomber In use for training and reserve squadrons
HA-XT51/A2
Kitakazé
Kamov Ka-50, Russia - Air Force AN1776402.jpg
 Tsurushima Attack helicopter gunship
HA-F66/D2
Azwu
Russian Navy, Kamov, Ka-52K (21444723505).jpg
 Messidor Amphibious assault helicopter gunship Modified HA-XT51/A2 Kitakazé helicopter
HU-F34/A3
Félin
A Royal Air Force Puma helicopter over the English countryside.jpg
 Messidor Utility helicopter
HL-F35/A2
Frelon
SA321 Super Frélon (cropped).jpg
 Messidor Heavy airlift helicopter
AU-F51/A1
Cachalot
A310MRTT.jpg
 Messidor Airlift/refueling plane Converted civilian aircraft, airborne early warning, electronic warfare and medevac variants

Ranks and insignia

All three branches of service make use of the same rank insignia, though titles vary.

Officer ranks

OF-10 OF-9 OF-8 OF-7 OF-6 OF-5 OF-4 OF-3 OF-2 OF-1
Insignia Messidor OF-10.png Messidor OF-9.png Messidor OF-8.png Messidor OF-7.png Messidor OF-6.png Messidor OF-5.png Messidor OF-4.png Messidor OF-3.png Messidor OF-2.png Messidor OF-1.png
Army Corps Rank Marshal of
the Corps
General Lieutenant
General
Division
Commander
Brigadier Colonel Lieutenant
Colonel
Battalion
Commander
Company
Commander
Platoon
Commander
Navy Corps Rank Marshal of
the Corps
Admiral Vice
Admiral
Rear
Admiral
Commodore Senior
Captain
Captain Junior
Captain
Senior
Lieutenant
Lieutenant
Air Corps Rank Marshal of
the Corps
General Lieutenant
General
Division
Commander
Wing
Commander
Squadron
Commander
Flight
Captain
Junior
Captain
Senior
Lieutenant
Lieutenant

Enlisted ranks

OR-10 OR-9 OR-8 OR-7 OR-6 OR-5 OR-4 OR-3 OR-2 OR-1
Insignia File:Messidor OR-10.png Messidor OR-9.png Messidor OR-8.png Messidor OR-7.png Messidor OR-6.png Messidor OR-5.png Messidor OR-4.png Messidor OR-3.png Messidor OR-2.png Messidor OR-1.png
Army Corps Rank Corps
Sergeant
Major
Regimental
Sergeant
Major
Battalion
Sergeant
Major
Company
Sergeant
Major
Platoon
Sergeant
Major
Section
Sergeant
Section
Adjutant
Senior
Soldier
Soldier Recruit
Navy Corps Rank Corps
Chief
Enlisted
Chief
Bridge
Chief
Deck
Chief
Watch
Chief
Watch
Sergeant
Senior
Sailor
Sailor Junior
Sailor
Recruit
Air Corps Rank Corps
Sergeant
Major
Wing
Sergeant
Major
Squadron
Sergeant
Major
Flight
Sergeant
Major
Watch
Chief
Watch
Sergeant
Senior
Airperson
Airperson Junior
Airperson
Recruit