Königliche Heer

The Königliche Heer (Royal Army in English) is the organisation responsible for all military activities within the Kingdom of Prussia (excluding those of the Royal Guard). The Heer is almost entirely composed of ground forces, though a small navy does still operate on the Dammscher Lake and Stettin Lagoon. This collection of ships was part of an independent Königliche Marine up until 1865 when it was put under the direct control of the Heer in order to centralise military forces. The Königliche Heer is the last human military known to exist on earth, and so sometimes makes use of the title ‘Army of Mankind’ (Armee der Menschheit in German).

Organisation
The Heer is divided into Armee Group Nord and Armee Group Sud, each one led by a Marshal commanding all military assets within the northern and southern halves of the Kingdom respectively. There are several departments which act independently of the Nord and Sud command structure, but all aspects of the military answer to the Defence Minister (or Grand Marshal) and from there to the King, who is considered the supreme commander of the armed forces.

Armee Group Nord
Armee Group Nord has its command centre in the enclosed city of Furstenberg on Wall St. Martin. Currently it is headed by Marshal August von Mackensen, since he took over from its former commander Ludwig von Hötzendorf in 1904. von Hötzendorf had commanded since 1870 succeeding the position from Helmuth von Moltke who had led Armee Group Nord since its formation in 1855.

Directly subordinate to von Mackensen are the commanders of the three divisions based in Armee Group Nord: I Infanterie Division, X Infanterie Division and III Dragoner Division. The headquarters for all three of these divisions is attached to that of Armee Group Nord and as such they are also based in Furstenberg. In practice these divisions are units of administration rather than combat, with their commanders acting also as the commanders of one of their division’s constitute regiments.

The regiments are deployed to the various fortified cities along Wall St. Simon, with the exception of the 6th ‘Polish’ and 29th‘King’s Own’ Infanterie Regiments. The 6th Infanterie is Schwedt on the River Oder as a response force, while the 29th is based in the enclosed city of Bernau on Wall St. Mary.

Armee Group Sud
Armee Group Sud has its command centre in the enclosed city of Dessan on Wall St. Nicholas. Currently it is headed by Marshal Dietrich ‘Dot’ Pyxis, since he took over from its former commander Amadeus von Clausewitz in 1875, who had commanded Armee Group Sud since its formation in 1855.

Directly subordinate to Pyxis are the commanders of the three divisions based in Armee Group Sud: V Infanterie Division, III Infanterie Division and I Dragoner Division. The headquarters for V Infanterie and I Dragoner Divisions are attached to that of Armee Group Sud and so are also based in Dessan. The headquarters for III Infanterie Division is based in the enclosed city of Sommerfeld on Wall St. John.

The regiments are deployed to the various fortified cities along Wall St. Simon.

The 66th Hussar Regiment
In an anomaly for the command structure, the 66thHussar Regiment, or ‘Death’s Head Hussars’, do not fall under the direct control of either Armee Groups Sud or Nord. While a member of the Hussars would still be subordinate to a higher-ranking soldier from outside of it, the Regiment operates with a great deal of autonomy, and is administered as an entirely separate branch of the Heer.

This system is due to the Hussars’ regular deployments beyond the Walls, as well as the unique brand of combat they have developed as a result. Since the Hussars suffer high losses and make use of a unique method of training it helps for them to be able to make requests and petitions directly to the Grand Marshal and so to the government, rather than having to manoeuvre through divisional and Armee Group hierarchy.

To facilitate this independence the commander of Death’s Head Hussars is granted the rank of Major-General. This is in contrast to the rank normally given to the commander of a regiment, that of Colonel. As a result the 66th often has officers bearing ranks such as Colonel or Brigadier whilst not being in command of the regiment.

The current commander of the Hussars is Major-General Erwin Smith who took over command from Lieutenant-General Kenneth Shadis in 1910. Shadis resigned his position as commander due to the disastrous failure of the 53rd Exterior Offensive. In an uncouth decision he chose to remain in the regiment, acting as Head Instructor for new recruits to the Hussars. Major-General Smith’s Second in Command is Brigadier Michael Zacharias, whose rank is an example of the unusual senior ranks which result in the Hussars.

The Königrliche Marine
The navy used by the Kingdom of Prussia is naturally very limited in size due to lack of access to substantial bodies of water. There are a limited number of river patrol boats which fall under the jurisdiction of the Marine, but in addition to these a series of warships are active on the Dammscher Lake and Stettin Lagoon, into which the Oder River flows. These ships do not see extensive service, but do see semi-regular combat against Titans that take to the water.

The Königliche Marine has only four frigates in its service: KDS Frederick, KDS Eisenseite, KDS Brandenburg and KDS Berlin. The KDS Berlin patrols the Dammscher Lake, while the other three ships patrol the much larger Stettin Lagoon to the north. The squadron is based in the enclosed City of Stettin.

The main task of the vessels is to protect fishing vessels from any Titans which attempt to swim after them, as well as keeping the mouth of the Oder secure. Since the Oder is open to allow ships passage, there is a very real threat that Titans could enter the Walls through this route. For that reason, the Königliche Marine-along with the local defensive emplacements-serve a vital role in keeping the waterways beyond the Walls open.

The commander of the Marine is awarded the rank of Admiral, but due to the navy’s limited size this is only equated to a Brigadier across the Heer as a whole. The Captains of the individual vessels confusingly equate to the rank of Major rather than Captain, a fact which has in the past led to misunderstanding between members of the land and naval forces.

The current commander of the Königliche Marine is Admiral Joseph Speer.

Armee Group Nord
I Infanterie Division

-18th‘Black Legion’ Infanterie Regiment

-10th‘Stettin’ Infanterie Regiment

-4th‘Blitzer’ Cavalry Regiment

X Infanterie Division

-6th‘Polish’ Infanterie Regiment

-29th‘King’s Own’ Infanterie Regiment

III Dragoner Division

-20th‘Liebenwalde’ Dragoner Regiment

-12th‘St. George’s’ Dragoner Regiment

Armee Group Sud
V Infanterie Division

-21st‘Leipzig’ Infanterie Regiment

-41st ‘Elbe’ Infanterie Regiment

-3rd‘Auslander Legion’ Infanterie Regiment

III Infanterie Division

-25th‘Magdeburg’ Infanterie Regiment

-32nd‘The Wanderers’ Infanterie Regiment

-13th‘Frankfurt’ Infanterie Regiment

I Dragoner Division

-35th‘Austrian’ Dragoner Regiment

-11th‘Brandenburg’ Dragoner Regiment

-3rd‘Iron-heart’ Dragoner Regiment

At Peace
With the exception of the Hussars, the bulk of the Heer spends its time outside of combat situations. In order for them to continue to make a meaningful contribution to society, soldiers tend to supplement the police forces in helping to maintain law and order. For this reason many soldiers receive training in the handling of anti-personnel firearms in addition to training in the use of anti-Titan weaponry.

Soldiers can also be called upon to act as manual labour for government construction and repair projects. In times of crisis of any kind soldiers tend to make an appearance, not only to maintain order but also to help in providing relief for those in distress, such as in the case of a natural disaster. This helps to maintain a good public image and avoid the notion that soldiers are just loafers living easy on tax payer money.

Military duties in peace time tend to focus primarily on training and the maintenance of defences. Regular drills are performed where the men will simulate combat against Titans or against rebel human militia. Training against human opponents initially began to fall out of popularity after the end the Great Titan War, but after the Simonian Uprising in 1835 training against human enemies was reinvigorated.

Should a major riot or open rebellion occur, the Heer’s job is to contain and/or destroy it. On past occasions this has required the use of deadly force, and has threatened the public reputation of the armed forces.

At War
See Breach Response Plans

In the event of the fall of a breach in Wall St. Simon, various planned operations are in place to counter it based on its location. With the use of railway lines forces nearby to the breach should be able to respond and establish a containment zone within less than two days of the breach occurring.

The first priority will always be evacuation of civilians from the area. Once civilians are cleared it makes it possible to use heavy artillery to a greater degree. Evacuation is to be carried out in most cases using railways supplemented where possible by barges. Military forces will deploy to contain Titan advances until civilian evacuation is complete, at which point there will either be a withdrawal to the nearest major Wall or a series of offensive actions-consisting largely of artillery bombardment-will begin.

Conscription and Service
While the Königliche Heer maintains a steady flow of voluntary recruits, it also preforms a regular draft from the male population aged between 21 and 25. Around half of all men will serve a minimum term in the armed forces of three years, after which time they are discharged and allowed to return to civilian life if they choose. Many young men voluntarily join the Heer at 21 to avoid being called up at an in-opportune time in later years.

Soldiers are assigned to regiments within their Armee Group, either Nord or Sud-with the exception of the Hussars and the Imperial Guard-as they are needed. So, a man from Furstenberg might be assigned to the Stettin Regiment.

Aptitude Testing
Upon joining the Heer, all recruits take a mandatory Omni-Directional Aptitude Test (commonly referred to as an Aptitude Test or ODA Test) to determine their potential skill with an Omni-Directional Manoeuvre System. This test functions in three stages:

-Balance Testing: Where the recruit must hold themselves upright whilst suspended from a pulley via a pair of belts attached at the hips

-Reflex Testing: Where the recruit must catch a measuring stick that is dropped at a random time. The higher up the stick the recruit’s hand, the later they grabbed it and thus the poorer their reflexes

-Strength Testing: Where the recruit must maintain a planking position for three full minutes to test their core strength. Originally this test was more complicated and strenuous, but due to a desire to expand the size of dragoon regiments the bar has in recent times been lowered to the current method

If the recruit should pass all three of these tests then they will be eligible to join a dragoon regiment. Regardless of what posting they request, should a recruit show abnormally high aptitude for ODM they will be assigned to a dragoon regiment. This does not normally apply when assigning recruits to either the Hussars or Imperial Guard, as these two units have nominally different recruitment criteria (see 66th ‘Death’s Head’ Hussar Regiment and Königliche Guard).

Emergency Conscription
In time of crisis, the Constitution allows for the expansion of conscription policy. Should the Reichstag deem the situation one of national crisis it may choose to enact mass scale conscription. This will entail all men between the ages of 16 and 40 who are not classed as ‘Reserved Occupation’ to serve five years of service in the Heer. A new regiment is to be raised as soon as the equipment needed for it is produced. Equipment stockpiles are already in place to arm another full infantry division and an entire dragoon regiment. Thus mustering is to take place every six months once mass levy begins, until such time as either no larger armed force can be supported or until the crisis is deemed over.

The Königliche Guard
Due to their nature as the King’s private regiment, the Royal Guard does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Heer. It answers instead to the Royal Household. It is widely considered the most prestigious military appointment possible for a soldier, as not only are they in the direct service of the King, but they are also chosen from among the most skilled recruits, all of whom are masters of the ODMS.

Some more liberal parts of the government and Heer dislike the fact that there should be a military unit that cannot be reined in by anyone other than the King, and which owes its loyalty not to the state, but to its ruler. The Royal Guard acts independent of traditional command structure, and only an officer of rank Colonel or higher from outside of the Guard may issue orders to its personnel.