All Things Vargr

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

A. The narrative implies that it's pretty easy for Vargr to transfer to their preferred career(s), voluntarily.

B. Which means, that anyone joining the, or a, Vargrian Guard understands what he's getting into.

C. Indogtrination would condition the trainees to accept an imposed pack leader to command their pack/platoon.

D. The most charismatic candidates from each intake might be segregated, and attempts made to teach them military sciences, and leadership.

E. You have a pool of ensigns, or cadets, that then can be tapped as assistants, runners, and pack leaders in waiting.

F. The cadet pool can be salted with offsprings from friends and family.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

G. Going by game mechanics, the draft is voluntary, and like Federation Service, the draftee gets placed into the (para)military service that he seems most suitable for.

H. With the Vargr, that's fifty percent Army, and the rest divided between Navy, Marines, and Law Enforcement.

I. I rather doubt that many Vargr actually are enthusiastic about serving in the Army.

J. I'd say draftees are economic refugees, who hope they get placed in one of the other three services.

K. And Vargr navies are rather small in comparison, and it's kinda hard to think they actually have any personnel slots open, not coveted by actual volunteers.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

L. Law Enforcement seems more internal security.

M. Marines suffers from the same problem as the Navy, which would be that there aren't that many spacecraft, and those wouldn't have that many personnel slots.

N. Naval spacecraft are likely paramilitarized civilian designs.

O. On the other hand, the name implies that they can be trained and used as expeditionary forces, which regional militias would resist.

P. Privateers, corsairs issued with a letter of marque, seems the more likely approach.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

Q. I think the problem with the Traveller draft, is that you volunteer for it, at a time of your choosing.

R. Whereas in real life, the draft chooses when it decides to inconvenience the draftee.

S. In any case, Vargr that are drafted need pack leaders.

T. You don't want pack leaders to develop organically from the draftee group.

U. Though, they could be selected as sub pack leaders.

 

[kilemall]

I had a potentially fun thought going with the Corsair/hunting pack theme-

What if the Pirates/Merchant careers were combined?

 

[Condottiere]

That is the business model for the Vikings.

Trade or raid.

My take on Vargr corsairs is that they are mercenary groups, looking for business opportunities, one of which would be uncompensated commandeering of goods.

In that sense, they can be both pirate and merchant, bearing in mind that they need to dispose of the spoils.

 

[Condottiere]

It seems obvious, but I think Vargr corsairs are economic parasites, and probably one of the major reasons that Vargr polities are so fragile.

That's ten percent of the total Vargr population, that's looking for an easy way to score.

That doesn't mean that couldn't contribute on occasion, like providing specialized services, such as computer hacking, or, if fuel prices are fixed, skinny dipping into the local gas giant, and selling it to whoever needs a refill.

A lot of startups are corsair packs, but, it's highly likely they'll lose interest, and are looking for someone to buy them out.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

V. Draftees would be assigned to banners.

W. Loyalty, cohesiveness, and combat effectiveness will widely vary.

X. Pack leaders will be imposed on platoon packs.

Y. Likely the draftees are going to be light infantry.

Z. With combat support and specialists likely mercenaries and corsairs, basically, the same thing.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

1. Initial Charisma score is between three and eight.

2. The Charisma score could indicate the organizational tier that a Vargr can lead.

3. Pack leaders need a minimum of three.

4. War chiefs commanding a band would need a minimum of six.

5. Warlords commanding a banner would need a minimum of nine.

6. Khanines commanding a horde would need a minimum of twelve.

7. And a Conqueror at the head of a host would need a minimum of fifteen.

8. That's the base permanent score, and not the temporary Charisma effect.

9. If a Vargr's Charisma score falls below the minimum, the grouping that he's leading will start to disintegrate.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

A. Vargr do not have titles of nobility as humans of high SOC do.

B. Like most aspects of Vargr society, there is no consistent system for titles and different packs and cultures will use their own arbitrary methods of assigning titles, if at all.

C. Travellers with CHA 10+ have enough dominance within their pack to select their own title or assign one to subordinates.

D. We'll stick to the generic terms.

E. Though, I suppose, king might work instead of Conqueror.

F. King Conqueror, or, maybe, Canis Rex.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

G.

H. That's law enforcement, per hundred thousand.

I. Versus ten thousand corsairs, doesn't seem much of a deterrence.

J. Odds are Vargr might average one cop per hundred.

K. Whatever form that cop takes.

 

[kilemall]

Vargr: Military Organization

G.

H. That's law enforcement, per hundred thousand.

I. Versus ten thousand corsairs, doesn't seem much of a deterrence.

J. Odds are Vargr might average one cop per hundred.

K. Whatever form that cop takes.

Shepherds?

 

[Grav_Moped]

Shepherds?

Two things:

a. Consider the possibility that corsairs bearing Letters of Marque actually constitute a significant component of Vargr military capability.

2. The hyperactive dapple-furred, psionically-intimidating, OCD-having Akumgeda Vargr of my ATU say hello.
(Piers and the Wolf narrative thread.)

Image credit: Screencap of YT video from the account SprotteLissy.

And:

Image credit and again, thank you: @The Pakkrat

 

[Condottiere]

German Shepherd was under consideration for either war chief or warlord.

The more you get into the nitty gritty of Vargr civilization, the more you come to the conclusion that their military isn't formally structured like human ones.

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

L. Let me go off on a tangent here.

M. Starships are expensive.

N. Starwarships even more so.

O. The big items would be engineering and the spinal mount.

P. Who's building spinal mounts in Vargrspace?

 

[Condottiere]

Vargr: Military Organization

Q. Answer, no one.

R. Consider how many spinal mounts that the Imperium has per subsector, with the resources of twenty one sectors.

S. It would be like one of those super weapons that the Germans tried to manufacture.

T. Except that the Vargr are nowhere as organized as the Germans.

U. And, all their neighbours, once they got wind of the project, would do their best to sabotage or bomb the factory.