///From the author: this is meant to be an encyclopedia entry-style post on the Spacer Corps, the primary military faction in The Spacers Saga, styled like a magazine or other periodical laying out details on the IDC as a whole. I may eventually do these for other groups within the lore, but this one at least is a necessity since the entire fiction is named after this organization
[A look at the Spacer Corps' flag - the Midnight Banner - flying in the night]
Historical Rundown:
The Interplanetary Defense Corps (IDC), colloquially referred to as the Spacer Corps, traces its earliest origins to the Mobilization Enabling Act of 2045, which formalized the partnership between NATO space forces for defense of cislunar resources. Following the Lunar War and the passage of the Tyndall Treaty, the IDC was founded in 2054 as a provision of the Nakhimov-Herrington Act which passed during the first legislative session of the Interplanetary Cooperative Administration’s (ICA) Administrative Council. This act enabled the ICA to organize a jointly-run, combined arms military force to protect ICA interests within Solar Space.
The IDC had roughly 1.3 million spacers by the Reorganization of 2089, considered by military historians to be the end of the Corps’ founding era. Over the next two centuries, it conducted a variety of low-level peacekeeping and anti-piracy operations in the inner and mid-system, especially in the Main Asteroid belt and the Jovian sector. During the Wayfarer Insurrection (2251-2276), they were the first line of defense against an insurgency that spread like wildfire across the colonial frontier.
During the Mars-Titan War (2292-2297), when rising tensions over control of outer system resources led to conflict between the United Nations of Mars and the Commonwealth of Titan, the IDC at first played the role of peacekeepers, but later joined the war on the side of Mars. This one act created a postwar status quo that has held steady for 90 years, with the Martian Command (MARSCOM) forming a cornerstone of the IDC and the bulk of ICA equipment manufactured by the Martian military-industrial complex. This status quo has led to rising tensions with the outer system due to Mars’ imperialist reputation.
As the various provisions of the Harrison Accords took effect throughout the early 2300s, the Spacer Corps became the outer system’s de facto police force. This in turn led to a sharp increase in nationalist and general anti-ICA sentiment throughout the frontier, which culminated in a series of violent revolutions across the outer system as the IDC cracked down on anything resembling an insurrection.
[A Mars-Titan War-era recruitment poster for FLEETCOM]
The most violent of these factions was the Divisão Revolucionária da Assembleia de Callisto (DRAC), which emerged on Callisto in 2317 and took power there in 2324. Over the next four decades, much of the outer solar system was engulfed with turmoil as rebel factions rose in support of and opposition to the Draconist movement, with the Spacer Corps in the middle, fighting to maintain order. This war spread to the Saturn subsystem, resulting in a civil conflict on Titan which is still technically ongoing as of 2389.
The Spacer Corps played a central role in all of this, initially acting as a security force for ICA-friendly governments, and then more and more as a proactive offensive force tasked with hunting down the Draconists and their allies and eliminating them. This reached a fever pitch during the sixteen years of Operation Lightning Dagger, a massive joint operation aimed at rooting out the remaining Draconists, which had gone to ground in the outer system after they were driven from power on Callisto in 2342.
When the Alliance of Free Worlds rose in 2339 from a collection of colonies that were as opposed to the presence of the Draconists as they were to Martian rule, the Spacer Corps faced a crisis of conscience, as nearly two whole SEFs defected to the Alliance and became the foundation of the Free Worlds Armada. In the years that followed, the IDC was forced to contain the threat posed by this new force.
The Zharan Uprising and the rise of the Zharan Collective exacerbated the difficulties the Spacer Corps faced, and by the 2360s, they faced the challenge of an ascendant Alliance, as well. Rising tensions spilled over into open war in 2371, with the IDC again pressed into service as a mainstream fighting force. For eight years, the IDC pumped out new vessels and trained new spacers as fast as possible to recoup its losses, all while the ICA fought a long-term diplomatic holding action. Still, the economic stress of this war put quite a strain on politics within the ICA, as constituent states squabbled over redistributed resources.
But this was not the only threat facing the already overstretched forces of the IDC and its various associated militias. When the zharans entered the fray on the side of the Alliance in 2379, it forced the IDC to agree to peace terms drawn up at the Nüwa Conference on Titan, which officially ended the war on 13 July 2381 after more than a decade of fighting. As of 2389, the Spacer Corps is the ICA’s first line of defense, even as many pundits predict that a reboot of the Frontier Wars will come in only a matter of time.
[A standard cap insignia for the Spacer Corps]
Facts & Statistics:
Official name: the Interplanetary Defense Corps (IDC)
Founded: first mustered on 20 August 2054 (established by provision of the Nakhimov-Herrington Act, ratified by the Interplanetary Administrative Council on 14 December 2053)
Total Strength: approximately 5,300,000 spacers as of 2389
Primary upper-level command delineation: the Spacer Expeditionary Force (SEF)
Spacers per SEF: approximately 160 thousand
Number of SEFs as of 2389: thirty-two (32)
Number of SEFs in the inner system: sixteen (16)
Number of SEFs in the outer system: eight (8)
Number of SEFs on standby at any one time: eight (8)
Military headquarters: Noctis Fossae, Republic of Tharsis, United Nations of Mars
Parent organization: Interplanetary Cooperative Administration (ICA)
Yearly defense spending: approximately $4.83 trillion; approximately 5.6% of GDP
Official motto: Semper Vigilans
Unofficial motto: The only good day to die is tomorrow
Official march: “The Spacers are Off Again”
Chorus: “Off again, chasing enemies of freedom,
"Taking the fight to wherever they are;
"Flying higher, soaring farther,
"Than anyone who ever came before”
Unofficial fighting song: “Those Damned Spacers and their Rockets”
Chorus: “Those damned spacers and their rockets,
"Flyin’ through the night;
"Those bastards keep on flyin’ faster,
"Damn those boys ain’t right”
Distribution of Forces:
[Dispositions of IDC forces in the inner system]
As part of long-term strategic plans which prioritize defense of the industrial base on Mars and the mining ops in the Asteroid Belt, the IDC maintains a significant presence in the inner system, with sixteen active Spacer Expeditionary Forces (SEFs) garrisoned across this most populous region of Solar Space. These forces reassure local populations of the ICA's ability to secure the sectors in the inner system by ensuring that overwhelming military force can be on hand to address potential Alliance aggression.
The chief military outpost in this part of Solar Space is Mars, which is also home to IDC Central Military Command and the bulk of the Spacer Corps’ military manufacturing and arms production. Other points of interest include Fort Hudson on Luna, the first major IDC facility beyond Earth, and McKendry Station, located in the Martian L5 point and home to the system's largest fleet berth not in direct planetary orbit. Mars is also where the bulk of the inactive SEFs are stationed, and from there they can be reactivated and deployed to forward postings within only a few months, as happened during the Frontier War.
[Dispositions of IDC forces in the outer system]
Although the outer solar system is primarily the domain of the Alliance of Free Worlds, the ICA does maintain a sizable presence there to make sure that they are ready to respond to any hostile activity conducted by the Armada. For this reason, the Spacer Corps deploys active-duty forces to a number of garrisons in the outer system, including the Europa Defense Zone, jointly overseen by Interplanetary Dynamics as a hub of outer system commerce, and the Mutual Defense Zones on Ganymede and Titan.
Since the outer system is also where most of the fighting has taken place during the troubled 24th century, the Spacer Corps keeps at least a quarter of its total force stationed there at all times to remind those whose loyalty to the Alliance is uncertain that the ICA can still project its power across all of Solar Space. For example, the 4th, 13th, and 25th SEFs are stationed semi-permanently on Titan solely for the purpose of augmenting the local Commonwealth Defense Forces and other elements of the Outer System Security Force in the event of a return to war, and supports the training of these forces as part of their duties.
Institutional Organization:
Major Commands ("EmCees"):
Aerospace Command (AEROCOM): the central command authority over the rest of the Spacer Corps, responsible for organizational and executive decisions for the entire force
Surface Command (SURCOM): the largest of the four commands, it controls all units intended for near-surface combat and is analogous to the U.S. Marine Corps within the IDC
Fleet Command (FLEETCOM): second-largest command after SURCOM, it is in charge of all IDC spacecraft and their crews, as well as the vast support infrastructure to keep them flying
Intelligence Command (INTELCOM): as the Spacer Corps’ joint military intelligence command, INTELCOM is in charge of gathering and analyzing intelligence across all of Solar Space
Combatant Order Divisions (CODs):
Air Supremacy Division: responsible for all of SURCOM’s fighters, VTOL gunships, and other air support vehicles, many of which are unmanned as of the 24th century
Asteroid Belt theater: based out of the Fort Wyandotte facility on Ceres, it consists of four SEFs and is responsible for the vast region of space between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter
Communications and Outreach Detachment: in charge of the public affairs, recruitment, and P.R. for the IDC, it also works closely with INTELCOM to generate propaganda, obscure military secrets, and so on
Gaian theater: in charge of two SEFs within the Gaian sector, one at Fort Hudson at the Lunar North Pole and one at Deckard Station at Earth's L5 LaGrange point
Inner System theater: based out of Breckenridge Station at Venus’ L5 point, this theater-based detachment controls all forces deployed between the Sun and Venus
Jovian theater: in charge of IDC personnel in the Jovian subsystem, which as of 2389 consists of one SEF stationed at Fort Narimsa on Europa and two stationed on Ganymede
Logistical Operations Detachment: responsible for logistical duties, and home to LODESTAR ("L.O.D. Enhanced Simulation Technology for Allocation of Resources") which simulates IDC logistical needs and allocates material where it is needed with little human interface
Martian theater: by far the largest of the theater-based detachments, it oversees eight separate SEFs, half of which are on standby for deployment at any given time
Mechanized Services Division: much like the ASD has control over SURCOM’s fighter aircraft, the MSD oversees SURCOM’s mechanized forces (i.e. tanks, IFVs, etc.)
Medical Operations Detachment: the division in charge of IDC medical affairs, it covers everything from dental work to trauma surgery, and directs the training of medical personnel
Kuiper Belt theater: controls all IDC forces operating in the Neptune sector and beyond, which as of 2389 consists of a single SEF stationed on the officially neutral moon of Triton
Saturn theater: consists of three SEFs, two based in the Commonwealth of Titan and one at Saturn's L5 point, which are on constant standby due to the situation on Titan
Security Forces Division: the military police wing of the IDC, in charge of investigating and prosecuting all crimes involving military personnel, except those under SID jurisdiction
Special Investigations Det: this wing of INTELCOM is charged with solving problems within the military purview but which fall outside ordinary operational parameters, such as those involving black projects, top-secret research, high-level compartmentalized information, and so on
Special Warfare Operations and Reconnaissance Detachment (SWORD): runs the IDC's elite special operations forces, with authority over every unit from the Reconnaissance Rangers to the SOAR Force, and often works closely with INTELCOM on top-secret black projects such as the infamous Project ALPHA ("Adaptive Learning Program for Human Advancement")
Strategic Operations Detachment: administers all of the IDC's strategic implements of warfare, from its WMDs and the wide variety of nuclear engines its spacecraft use to its top-secret weapons research programs (many of which are conducted at Kelvin Station in orbit of Venus)
Training & Readiness Detachment: responsible for the training of incoming personnel at any one of the roughly two dozen intake facilities based across Solar Space, and for overseeing the long-term readiness of the IDC force through ongoing exercises, drills, and so on
Uranus theater: this detachment covers the Uranus sector, vital to FLEETCOM for its helium reserves, and is in charge of a single SEF stationed at Fort Coriolanus on Oberon as of 2389
Surface Command (SURCOM):
Founded: 31 July 2089
Surface Command was the first to be split off from the old “One Force, One Fleet” model
Number of personnel: approximately 3,100,000 spacers (approx. 17% see frontline service)
Number of aircraft: approximately 15,400 (includes fast attack craft, transport VTOLs, etc.)
Number of ground vehicles: approximately 71,300
Official motto: Paratus Agendum ("Ready for action")
Unofficial motto: "Victory through firepower"
Standard unit breakdown:
Fireteam: four spacers (usually 1 grenadier, 1 auto-rifleman + aide, and 1 team leader)
Squad: 2 fireteams plus 1 squad leader (usually an E-5)
Platoon: 3 squads plus 5-man command section (32 spacers, led by an O-1 or O-2, plus an E-6 Platoon Sergeant, a comms technician, and a Platoon Medic + aide)
Company: 3 infantry platoons, 1 weapons platoon, & a command section (approx. 150 spacers, typically led by an O-3 & command staff)
Battalion: typically consists of 3 infantry, 1 heavy weapons, and 1 logistics/support company (approx. 800 spacers, led by an O-4 or O-5)
Brigade: typically 2 infantry, 1 cavalry, 1 artillery, and 1 engineering/support battalions (approx. 4,000 spacers, led by an O-6 or O-7)
Division: typically 2 infantry brigades, 1 mobility brigade, 1 fire support brigade, and a logistical element (approx. 19,000 spacers; led by an O-7 or O-8)
Spacer Expeditionary Force: typically 3 infantry divisions, 1 mechanized division, and one Combat Air Wing, plus a FLEETCOM Space Wing for troop transport, space supremacy, etc. (approx. 150 thousand spacers; led by an O-9 or O-10)
Fleet Command (FLEETCOM):
Founded: 12 September 2089
Founded by provision of the Rykov Act, which began the process of reorganizing the IDC into the structure that has been used ever since
Number of personnel: approximately 1,800,000 spacers (only about 3-4 percent serve aboard spacecraft)
Number of spacecraft: roughly 3,300 (2387 tally: 3,325)
Note: approximately 30% are stored in mothball status for emergency reactivation
Primary shipyards are at Deimos, the Republic of Ceres, and the Republic of Pallas
Annual shipbuilding capacity is approximately 100 capital ships (can be increased 3-4x in the event of a declaration of interplanetary emergency)
Official motto: A Mari ad Astra ("From the sea to the stars")
Unofficial motto: "Fly fast and carry a big stick"
Standard unit breakdown:
Team: 2-8 spacers assigned to a specific area of responsibility; typically led by an NCO (E-5 to E-7) or junior officer (O-2 or O-3)
Group: 6-5 teams (12 to 40 spacers) typically assigned to operate a spacecraft or ground station; typically led by a mid-tier officer (O-4 or O-5)
Squadron: 6-8 groups, each one typically an individual spacecraft assigned to the same mission in a deployment plan (led by an O-6)
Flight: a group of 2-3 squadrons (12 to 24 spacecraft, for example) assigned to a particular duty within the framework of the SEF or wing (typically led by an O-7)
Wing: typically all of the flights in an SEF combine to form a wing (example given: the 16th Space Supremacy Wing - see below); usually commanded by an O-8 or O-9
Example - the 16th Space Supremacy Wing
First mustered: 15 April 2287
Number of spacecraft: ~75 at any one time, separated into five squadrons, each of which can support its own mission
Number of personnel: approximately 54 thousand; only about four percent of these serve on ships, with the rest assigned to rear echelon support roles (maintenance, supply, etc.)
Nickname: Shadow Warriors
Motto: "Second to None"
Major engagements:
Asteroid Belt campaign, Mars-Titan War (2293-2297)
Blockade of Callisto (2325-2331)
Campaign in the Jovian Sector, Jovian Civil War (2331-2337)
Blockade of Titan, Second Titan Civil War (2348-2357)
Campaign in the Uranian Sector, Frontier War (2371-2374)
Wolfpack campaign in the Asteroid Belt, Frontier War (2376-2379)
Emergency counteroffensive, Frontier War (2379-2381)
Security Patrols - Main Asteroid Belt (2384-current)
Intelligence Command (INTELCOM):
Founded: 3 November 2108
The last Major Command to be founded, INTELCOM was conceived as a unified military intelligence HQ by Colonel Gavin Belmont, the “Father of Modern Military Intelligence”
It has served as the eyes and ears of AEROCOM for more than 250 years, covering everything from data analysis to counterintelligence to advanced covert operations
Number of personnel: approximately 300,000 uniformed staff
Note: this is only an estimate, as INTELCOM does not publish hard data about its operatives, including their numbers, for obvious reasons
Official motto: Percutimus in tenebris (“We strike in darkness”)
Unofficial motto: “By the time you hear us, it’s too late”
IDC Ranks & Insignia:
[junior enlisted and noncommissioned officer ranks]
Spacer (SPC): the basic “grunt” level soldier of the Spacer Corps, and the reason for its name, this is the rank assigned to raw recruits and graduates of basic recruit training or "Spacer Boot Camp", or to junior enlisted personnel “busted” down to E-1 as punishment for infractions
Spacer First Class (SFC): considered the entry-level of the IDC, these spacers have “earned their stripe,” so to speak, after graduating from the basic training exercises which take up roughly the first year of any spacer’s career. From there, the rest of their time is spent doing real work
Senior Spacer (SSP): generally seen as a stepping stone to junior NCO roles, the Senior Spacer is responsible for keeping the "Big Machine" working by maintaining proper communications between its most fundamental moving parts: the enlisted spacers and their NCOs
Corporal (CPL): as the first of the junior noncommissioned officer (NCO) ranks, corporals are tasked with enforcing the commands of more senior noncoms, in order to keep things operating smoothly. Typically they are in charge of the very most basic organizational units in the Corps
Sergeant (SGT): often considered the heart & soul of their unit, these noncommissioned officers are the real jack-of-all-trades of the enlisted Corps: they enforce orders from senior officers, maintain discipline, establish esprit de corps, and inspire their subordinates, all in one package
Staff Sergeant (SSG): these noncoms are generally positioned as platoon sergeants, section leaders, and heads of working units, and are expected to leverage the expertise of their prior service to ensure that the frontline units in which they are placed can operate efficiently
Master Sergeant (MSG): these are the real end all, be all of the Spacer Corps, as their years (sometimes even decades) of real-world experience make them invaluable to its operations. Their know-how is often balanced by a stern, disciplinarian bent, also earned from experience
Senior Master Sergeant (SMS): as often as not, these are the most senior noncoms in a unit, with their final word only superseded by the commissioned officers themselves. Even then, the smart officers know that a “Chief” will know best, and know to defer to their better judgment
Chief Master Sergeant (CMG): the average noncom usually needs at least twenty to twenty-five years of experience to reach this rank. As such, they are often the very final word in judgment calls at the enlisted level, and generally can supersede junior commissioned officers
[commissioned and General Officer ranks]
Ensign (ENS): much as with the rank of Spacer (E-1), an ensign is generally only encountered in training, or when a Lieutenant has been busted down in rank as punishment. They are the very most basic, entry-level officers in the Corps, and are usually promoted up quickly
Lieutenant (LT): these officers are the very essence of the officer corps, and the backbone of basically every frontline unit in the Spacer Corps as a whole. They run infantry platoons, technical sections, and other foundational units which make up the bulk of the Spacer Corps
Captain (CPT): when a senior spacer proves themselves worthy, they are made a sergeant; likewise, when a lieutenant proves themselves, they are made into a captain. These officers are responsible for leading infantry companies, flights, and other larger but still fundamental units
Major (MAJ): as the Corps’ middle-of-the-road officers, they are the backbone of any mid-sized unit. Their multiple years of commissioned service gives them the experience necessary to properly organize and streamline the work of frontline operations, and shape junior leaders
Commander (CDR): with upwards of twenty years of experience under their belts, the average commander is worthy of the responsibilities they are given, whether they be warships, regiments, or other upper-level commands, and their expertise makes them respected leaders
Colonel (COL): the average colonel is a leader of the largest “mainstream” units in the Spacer Corps, and usually has upwards of thirty of service stacked behind the decisions they make. Even still, there is a trope which claims that colonels are the real wildcards of any military force
Brigadier General (BRG GEN): they are generally in charge of the lowest high-level commands, including average-sized installations, brigades, & detachments of military vessels. The years of experience they bring to bear makes them highly respected motivators of more junior spacers
Major General (MAJ GEN): Major Generals are in charge of mid-sized commands, such as divisions, and lead them in the execution of duties up to and including the fulfillment of major frontline operations, with their extensive knowledge making them indispensable leaders
Lieutenant General (LT GEN): the commanders behind groups of divisions, and sometimes whole SEFs, with all the experience and know-to necessary to support such responsibility. They are generally multi-decade veterans of the Corps, and are respected above almost all others
General (GEN): full Generals are usually in charge of entire SEFs, a series of high-level command units, or even entire Combatant Order Divisions. Their number includes the various members of the Supreme Military Council, and the Chairperson of Aerospace Operations, Marcus A. Shinseki
Spacer Corps uniforms:
DRESS & SERVICE UNIFORMS
Notes:
The uniforms of the IDC have a long history, as their origins can be traced back to the earliest days of organized, large-scale space travel. The Class A service dress, meant for use at official functions (government hearings, office postings, etc.) and is not intended to be airtight. Class B uniforms are intended for use in office situations and in garrison postings where the more formal Class As are not necessary.
The main difference between Class A and B uniforms is the difference in headwear (peaked caps for Class As and color-coded berets with unit flashes for Class Bs), and that the Class B uniforms lack the more traditional tunics upon which officers and enlisted spacers wear their campaign ribbons on the Class A uniform. The main difference between the uniforms of officers and enlisted spacers is that rank insignia are worn on the sleeves of the former, whereas they appear on shoulder boards on the latter.
DUTY UNIFORMS
Notes:
Class C-I coveralls trace their origins to the suits worn in space stations by astronauts as far back as the 1970s. Class C-II duty fatigues are meant to be worn in secure environments such as large-scale enclosed military outposts, multi-use space stations, and indoor habitats on worlds like Mars, Titan, and so on. Class C-III bodysuits act as a base layer for Class C-IV combat EVA suits, and are designed to be made airtight in the event of a breach in the oversuit. Standard-issue duty boots can also be made airtight for use in vacuum, and can magnetically adhere to metallic surfaces for microgravity situations.
The last detail of note is the IDC’s use of color-coded berets to distinguish the home command of the spacers wearing them. Examples include blue for FLEETCOM, green for SURCOM, and crimson for the Security Forces. Members of the Special Operations Command (SOCOM) wear the yellow beret, which distinguishes them from other spacers. Members of these elite units, though highly respected by their peers, are often referred to by colloquial nicknames such as “Mustard Heads” or “Yellow Domes.”
IDC camouflage:
Notes:
The modern (circa 2389) Spacer Corps camouflage patterns (codenamed "Uniform Concealment Patterns A-F") were adopted throughout the 2340s and '50s as part of the noted Spacer 300 modernization program. A notable exception is Pattern F, which is used exclusively on Mars by local detachments garrisoned there as security. Pattern A was the first developed, and is primarily used by FLEETCOM spacers aboard spacecraft or in garrison at IDC bases. Patterns B and C were designed in the early 2350s for use on Titan and the large moons of Jupiter (especially Ganymede). Patterns D and E were developed last, and are meant for use on worlds with atmosphere (primarily gravity cities in the Main Belt, but also on Earth).
This is perfect. Going deep into the lore is a lot of fun!