Marsilion Guard



The Marsilion Guard are a paramilitary civil defense force, located in the town of Marsilion. They are often referred to as Browncoats, after the brown coats and jackets they wear on duty. Founded early in the city's history, they serve as the town's police force, fire department, and coast guard, as well as dealing with inner and metro area crime and banditry.

The Guard are a very independent organization that has a "Texas Ranger" mentality of self reliance and being mentally and physically ready to handle anything that comes their way. Their stated mission is to "Serve, protect, and safeguard the citizens of Marsilion and all her allies by any means possible, in any situation that may arise."

Despite paramilitary origins, they are separate from the Marsilion Armed Forces.

History


The Marsilion Guard has been around unofficially since before the town began, according to journals from the earliest Marsilion settlers. Initially it was called merely the "Watch", a small group of volunteer thief-takers with equipment funded from their own pockets or from donations. Over time, it's duties extended past simple town militia duties and to all forms of emergency services. It was formally written down and established as the Marsilion Guard sometime after Year 15, at the same time as the establishment of a centralized government in Marsilion.

In Year 40, the Guard was empowered under the Northward act. It was given the authority to not only patrol Marsilion's borders but also to officially liase and work with village militias in the metro area, giving it a parallel position to the Army in policing the countryside. The act also established the creation of the Marsilion City Militia (see below) in times of war or emergency.

The Guard, as a town watch first and foremost, has survived every regime change in Marsilion, although they have often supported one side or another in internal power struggles. An example would be in the Second Infinitas War, where they were quietly dissatisfied with the Trade Union's harsh wartime leadership. Many of their members looked the other way as to Saber's activities during the war, and the Guard openly refused to quell the riots or fight under the warlords during the Battle for Marsilion. Many Guardsmen also worked as informants for Saber.

Organization and Duties


The Guard is organized directly under the Chief Magistrate of Marsilion and answers to nobody else, although the Magistrate can opt to place the Guard under the military's command in a time of crisis. Guardsmen are trained to be self reliant and react to situations as they come through a mix of social engineering, knowledge in practical subjects and ability to think on their feet. Their organizational structure is not very rigid as a result, with individual guardsmen able to perform a variety of duties. A common saying in the Guard is "One Riot, One Guardsman", reflecting their belief that a single guardsman should be ready and willing to deal with everything up to a riot within seconds of it occurring.

The Guard currently contains around 90 patrol guardsmen (at the least, one per one hundred citizens), as well as around 70 other personnel that provide logistical, communications, command, and specialist duties. Branches of the Guard include:


 * Patrol - Patrol guardsmen walk a beat and stop crimes as they occur, enforcing laws.


 * Mounted Patrol - Mounted patrolmen are used as a rapid response force, and often police the roads leading into and out of Marsilion.


 * Special Response Team - A small group of well trained guardsmen used to respond to high risk situations, like hostages or barricaded suspects.


 * Advanced Medical Team - Handles casualties and advanced medical situations. Operates ambulances and litters.


 * Communications - Coordinates operations via radio or light signals, or other methods such as magic or telepathy.


 * Logistics - Deals with equipment distribution and supply.


 * Water operations - Operates coast guard search boats and aquatic race divers to rescue those in danger on or underneath the water.

Equipment
The most iconic piece of Guard equipment is the "Brownie", which is a generic nickname for the standard piece of outerwear every Guardsman must wear while out of the station and on duty. The brownie serves to identify guardsmen to those around them without severely constricting individuality; the only requirements are that the garment be a piece of easily visible outerwear in a dark brown color, with "GUARDSMAN" stenciled upon the back in yellow or white letters and the Guard logo (a shield facing the water) on the front. Hats are commonly added as a part of the culture of the organization, but not required. The only branch to not wear brownies is the Special Response Team, who wear black, mostly standardized, armored uniforms while performing SRT duties.

The standard sidearm given to all Guardsmen is a single action .357 magnum revolver with either a traditional or modern grip, able to run off black powder rounds for training or smokeless rounds for duty assignments. The weapon may not necessarily be carried on duty - some guardsmen prefer to substitute their own personal weapons, such as semi-automatic pistols in good condition.

If a longarm is needed in the line of duty, a heavy, single shot, 10 gauge black powder shotgun based loosely off the real life Greener police gun (which also doubles as a club and riot control weapon) will often be issued. However, much like their sidearms, patrol guardsmen often pad out their equipment with issued or bought 12 gauge double barreled shotguns, .303 lever action or bolt action rifles, or even the odd high tech submachinegun, and can often be seen with these on patrol.



All patrol guardsmen are issued with either a collapsible baton or a tonfa-style hardwood cane, as well as handcuffs, and a short range "brick" radio with an effective range of 2 km (5 km with a powerful receiving station). Cavalry officers are often equipped with more powerful radio sets with longer antennas.

The Special Response Team is equipped with higher tech firearms and whatever soft body armor the Guard can get it's hands on. Sometimes the SRT has been known to use full blown powered armor suits salvaged from offworld, although rumor has it that these have since been sold to the Marsilion Armed Forces. A notable higher tech longarm used by SRT sniper teams is the Big Bertha 25mm antimaterial rifle. Using specialized ammunition with a tungsten penetrator and a high explosive core (it's timer regulated by magic so as to explode inside the target) the powerful single shot rifle is capable of disabling hostile robots or light armored vehicles that may run amok, as well as punching through obstacles to hit concealed suspects that are posing a danger.

Transport
Most Guardsmen operate within the city's perimeter on foot. When transport of prisoners, equipment, or fast travel is needed, horse-drawn wagons and mounted officers are usually used. The Guard does operate two salvaged, upgraded trucks for the use of it's SRT team and patrolmen on raids, however, although they are used sparingly.

Paranormals in the Guard
The Guard often offers training, equipment and funds to guardsmen who have special abilities that benefit their chosen field to aid in their development, and makes heavy use of paranormal abilities. Telepaths, for example, have no problem finding a place within the communications division, where they assist in getting over language difficulties and coordinate soldiers in the event of communications breakdown or failure. Many Guard communication officers are capable of peering out through the eyes of someone on the scene or mentally linking converging officers together, in order to carry out advanced maneuvering for an arrest.

Despite this "paranormal-friendly" attitude, certain empowered individuals sometimes face discrimination from their peers, although very rarely from superiors.

Marsilion State Militia
Formed underneath the guard in times of war, the Marsilion State Militia consists of groups of armed and basically trained civilians organized into loose fighting units under guardsmen. In the event of a sudden attack on the city, these militiamen are often the first and last line of defense, buying the Army time to organize itself and counterattack. During peacetime the Militia does not officially exist, but can be recreated frighteningly quickly - during the First Marsilion War, for example, about one thousand militiamen were raised within 12 hours with word of the sacking of two villages inside the metro area by hostile forces.

During the Second Battle of Marsilion, the state militia took part in asymmetric warfare operations behind and in front of advancing House forces, delaying, sabotaging and informing on the movements of House forces, often fighting alongside Marsilion Army forces street to street.

The Militia can be put directly under the Army's command in times of crisis, but is still organized and operated by the Guard. As a part time assignment, almost anyone can sign up for the militia, or be "pre-registered" as a candidate in times of peace. The only requirement is being able to lift and fire a rifle.

Jobs and Roleplaying Notes
To be written