MARINES
Last Update: 07/23/2005
HYPOTHERMIA CAPSULES
A large number of hypothermia capsules for the accommodation and transport of Imperial Marines have been installed aboard ghop qeylIs. While the original Vor'Cha-DaH'HoS design was intended as a testing vessel/active-duty battlecruiser almost exclusively (the DaH'HoS itself had no Marine personnel assigned to it at the time of its loss), the Vor'Cha-DaH'HoS Mark II is fitted with facilities for the long-term stationing of Marines aboard to keep the ship as versatile as possible for Empire needs. The cargo holds, hanger deck and scout bays can be configured for additional hypothermia capsules/sleeping bunks and equipment storage areas when there is a temporary need for additional Marine forces. (See CREW ACCOMMODATIONS for berthing of officers and unfrozen enlisted personnel).
Frozen personnel are typically equipped with the following equipment while inside their hypothermia capsules:
A hand blade weapon (often a d'k tagh and/or mek'leth).
A disruptor pistol with two replacement power packs (kept charged by power supplied through the capsule unit).
Sonic anti-personnel grenades (no damage done to ship when used).
Combat computer (kept charged by power supplied through the capsule unit). Unit will be given information updates during the thawing process.
Light first aid kit (fewer items than used on assault missions off the vessel since more supplies are liberally scattered throughout the ship's corridors and in many compartments).
Two servings of combat food rations (emergency supplies scattered throughout the vessel would supplement this supply in defensive situations).
There are two normal methods to reviving frozen crewmembers:
Standard mode is used normally when troops are needed. Thawing takes approximately five minutes with an average fatality rate of 1%. Time is then usually allocated for self-reorientation, eating and mission preparation.
Emergency mode is used when they are needed immediately (such as a boarding of the ship by hostile forces.) This takes approximately 10 seconds with an average fatality rate of 10%. If possible they will be briefed at the time of thawing with the particulars of the current crisis. Otherwise they will follow instructions given to them before they were frozen until new orders are provided.
The hypothermia capsules built in the last two decades incorporate a relatively new development in Klingon technology. The capsules are now equipped with neural transceivers that are affixed to the head of the soldier. These transmitters broadcast signals to the brain of the warrior to provide them with news and other information to keep them up-to-date on events, as well as aid in monitoring the soldier's condition. These help cut down on the time required updating troops on events around them. In emergency situations, personnel can receive a preliminary briefing through these broadcasts to help acquaint them with the situation they will be facing. These transceivers are still relatively simplistic so only basic information is usually transmitted to the hibernating soldier. Greater levels of detail are provided after the soldier has been revived. Since the soldier must be revived partially to restore brain function sufficient to receive the broadcasts, systems have been incorporated to provide nutritional supplements to the hibernating soldier similar to those used in the Sickbay stasis units. Normally, bodily functions are slowed to the point that the body is able to maintain itself in suspension for long periods of time in an "as-is" condition. The level of revival needed to receive these broadcasts (usually performed once every two weeks for a one-hour period of time) is sufficient to accelerate consumption of nutrients already in the body. If stored for a long period of time, the nutrient injection system can be used to replenish consumed nutrients.
EMBARKED MARINE FORCES
IKV ghop qeylIs has assigned to it the Commanding Officer & staff of Marine Task Force 941 and its 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th Battalions, primarily trained for small unit actions, such as ship security, boarding of enemy vessels, supplementing ground units already in place for limited time periods, armed reconnaissance of enemy ground installations, etc.
Within the Marine forces assigned to ghop qeylIs are personnel known as "Death Team" units. These personnel have as their primary mission assaulting and seizing the bridge/command facilities of enemy spacecraft/installations and their personnel. They are usually armed with stun weapons and other devices designed to minimize damage and injury due to the value of their targets and the need to keep them intact during the assault process. If the layout of the enemy C&C area is known ahead of time, an optimum troop beam-in pattern will be utilized to maximize their effectiveness based on studies and simulations performed by Imperial tacticians as well as the particulars of the current situation. Enemy vessel/station shields are continuously monitored to search for apparent strength variations. When shield strength drops to a level deemed acceptable, the Marine forces will attempt to beam through the weakened shield area onto the enemy C&C center. (See TRANSPORTERS section for procedures in this operation.) Due to the limited number of "Death Team" personnel usually involved, it is a common practice to beam other forces into surrounding areas to intercept enemy reinforcements. The Death Teams are divided into six teams, each having 4-10 soldiers per team.
They are broken down as follows:
Team One: Hegh'obmaQ (Death Ax)
Team Two: Heghjop (Death Thrust) - these personnel are all members of House Reshtarc (and rumored to be members of the Iw'rA [Blood Order Assassins]).
Team Three: Heghbom (Death Song) - this team was reformed in mid-2373 after all personnel were killed in the defeat of a kuve rebellion.
Team Four: Hegh'Igh (Death Curse) - more properly called the "Death Jinx" due to his high casualty rate. This team has been completely reformed six times due to losses in combat. It is also one of the most-desired assignments.
Team Five: HeghmupwI' (Death Hammer) - specialists in language and technical disciplines, these personnel are held in reserve until the objective is at least partially secured. They will then beam in for information gathering. Death Team units will not leave their area of operations until HeghmupwI' declares the task completed.
Team Six: HeghHargh (Death Battle) - this team specializes in reconnaissance and observation tasks. Assignments to this Team are usually given only to veteran bu' (sergeants) felt to have the discipline to resist the urge to engage the enemy. This is necessary due to the role of recon forces being to avoid battle with their opponent (generally much stronger than themselves). Younger soldiers are rarely able to overcome their desire for battle to be able to serve in this group.
EMBARKED MARINE EQUIPMENT
A small quantity of heavy equipment (personnel carriers, hover tanks, artillery, etc.) is carried aboard ship, mainly in the primary personnel barracks/heavy equipment storage area just forward of the Engineering section, for use by the assigned Marine contingent. Originally this space was intended to be a third Scout Bay. This is also the main gathering point for forces departing the ship. Personnel and equipment from other barracks/storage areas can be moved through corridors and lifts or by use of site-to-site transporters if deemed necessary (since site-to-site transport is still not deemed entirely "safe" this is usually done only for equipment). In addition, there are assault shuttle vehicles embarked dedicated to Marine insertion and support missions in the Hanger Deck. A large corridor and cargo turbolift runs between the primary barracks area and the Hanger Deck for movement of personnel and equipment between these areas. The forces aboard ghop qeylIs are not intended for large-scale and/or extended engagements. Larger assault missions will require additional forces to be brought in. Alternately, one or both of the B'rel vessels carried aboard could be offloaded temporarily to make room for more troops and/or equipment if additional vessels cannot be used to transport them.
A typical load of equipment and vehicles aboard ship for use by Marine personnel in their missions may include:
Disruptor artillery cannons, based on the ship-mounted weapon, adapted for ground operation and attenuated for atmospheric usage.
Photon artillery cannons, based on the ship-mounted weapon, adapted for ground use.
Rocket artillery launchers.
Two GP-6 tracked utility vehicles.
Four GP-12 wheeled utility/cargo vehicles.
Two GP-42 engineering vehicles fitted with various construction implements.
Five ASC-20 tracked recon scouts fitted with disruptors and rocket weapons.
Ten AGV-80 disruptor tanks fitted with disruptors and rockets.
Two AGV-85 tank-killers (modified AGV-80) replacing the disruptors with a photon torpedo launcher.
Eight PAV-3 assault shuttle vehicles capable of transporting up to 50 troops or 2-4 vehicles.
Two PAV-3C assault shuttle vehicles (modified into mobile command posts).
MARINE FORCE OPERATIONS
The Marine Force Leader has instituted a policy of periodic rotation of the personnel kept in hypothermia storage. A small number of troops are kept on "active" status aboard ship at all times. These troops are engaged in training activities and kept available for emergency and other needs. Approximately every 2-3 months these troops are put into storage and another group is revived to replace the previous group.
Troop Insertion Methodologies
The landing site for Marine forces will be selected by the Marine Force Leader of the Marine unit(s) stationed aboard the ship. If combat has already begun, the landing site will usually be as close to the area as possible to minimize the amount of time needed for the new troops to engage enemy forces. Otherwise, vacant areas near the objective yet far enough not to be noticed by the enemy will usually be selected.
From either an orbital altitude or within an atmosphere, there is an option to utilize drop ships originally designed for the Armageddon-class Assault Transport, which is also based on the Vor'Cha-class Attack Cruiser. These would be mounted on the wing pylons in place of the weapon pods normally carried, one per wing. These can be configured for carrying troops, equipment, supplies or a combination of these. The navigational qualities and range of these vessels are limited to orbital distances. Once the target area has been secured, utilizing the Marine assault shuttles to lift it and bring it back to the launching vessel can retrieve the drop ship. Alternately, they can be used as the start of a habitat facility for Klingon forces. Engineering personnel can setup prefabricated structures that can be attached to the drop ship hulls. Propulsion and other systems not needed for a habitat would be recovered and refurbished for use on other drop ships.
If usage of transporters from orbit is not possible but atmospheric entry can be performed, personnel and equipment can be moved from the ship to the combat area by any of the following methods:
Usage of the transporter system at a lower altitude if the impediment to orbital insertion is limited to the upper atmosphere.
From an altitude deemed appropriate for the situation, parachute landings may be attempted while the vessel is operating in a cloaked mode. This method is not commonly used due to possibility of detection by enemy forces as the size of the group being inserted increases in size. Forces being landed by this method also often experience being dispersed over a large area, requiring time to be spent reassembling the forces and equipment before beginning their mission. It does, however, have the benefit of permitting the deployment of forces with some measure of secrecy since no energy is required for this method (unlike the use of transporters or tractor beams). Troops and equipment egress through the belly hatch and/or hanger deck doors. Equipment would be secured to antigravity pallets for movement while aboard ship. Parachutes for equipment sent out through the belly hatch are deployed two seconds after the beginning of free-fall to prevent the parachute from entangling itself on hull protrusions. Parachutes on equipment moved out the hanger deck doors are deployed immediately. The antigravity pallets are activated approximately 15 seconds before touchdown. Once descent has been stopped by the antigravity pallet at an altitude of one cam, the pallet's antigravity system will then lower the pallet to the ground and power down.
The assault vehicles are fitted with external mechanical and magnetic clamps that attach to Marine equipment for movement to the surface. If problems maintaining hold of the vessel are detected, the connection can be reinforced with tractor beams from the shuttle. The HRF and ISF fields of the shuttle are extended around any external load carried by shuttle and set to maximum available strength. If available, the fighters can also be utilized to move Marine equipment by use of their tractor beam emitter.
Personnel and equipment can cross over a series of force fields projected from the primary barracks/storage area to the landing zone. In effect, a "ramp" is generated. Continuous monitoring of the force field projectors will be required to insure uninterrupted operation.
Equipment can be lowered to the surface by tractor beams from the primary barracks/storage area. Personnel will descend either in the vehicles or in armored pods to hold them as they land. These pods can also be used for storage and transport of light equipment and supplies.
Of course, the deflector shields of the Vor'Cha will have to be lowered to facilitate delivery of personnel and equipment by any method other than the assault shuttles and parachutes. The risk to the ship will always be a significant factor in Marine insertion operations. While damage is virtually unavoidable, there is no gain in taking foolish and unnecessary risks. If the situation permits, the objective area will be subjected to pre-insertion bombardment before assault operations begin. The embarked fighters and scouts can also be used to provide cover for the Vor'Cha during Marine landing operations.