Going waaay back to the first post in this thread:
I don't think they'd have a separation of 'officers' and 'enlisted'. Everyone starts where their charisma (natural or inherited) and perceived competence places them, and goes up or down from there as their fortunes and competence dictate.
It doesn't matter who your Mom or Dad is if you can't stare down or beat down your squad leaders when you're parachuted into the platoon commander slot. Screw that up and you're a squad leader if you're lucky, and the most charismatic squad leader takes 'your' slot. And your parents know that, so they'd not put you in there untried anyway - if you're the apple of their eye they'd put you in unit that's got a 'soft' job (but not one so safe there's no opportunity to show leadership, etc.) so you can learn to lead without too much risk of screwing up, but that's the best they can do, really - aside from sending you to the best schools (which would include charisma training - something low status/charisma Vargr's kids' school wouldn't cover effectively), getting you the best health care growing up, and so on.
Having rich and powerful parents would certainly very much help a young Vargr, but their society is more meritocratic than Imperial Humans' one is - assuming merit is measured by Charisma, of course.
Checking back, my interest in Vargr started about over a decade ago, when I came to the realization that they're basically us (as compared to the Solomani, who are actually us), but in furry suits.
And, less inhibited.
Which gave the Vargr potential to be interesting, compared to every other faction, major or minor.
There are no atheists is a foxhole.
So a Vargr, in a combat situation, either performs, or proves he's unsuitable in his current position.
This would be where having rich parents, and/or a powerful clan, would kick in.
All (other) things being equal, the parents can arrange for extracurricular activities involving intense combat and military training for their cubs, that other less wealthy or positioned parents might not be, giving an inbuilt advantage to what might have been average cadets, or even, if left alone, underperformers.
I don't think it's so much that Vargr parents really want to send their cubs in the military, it's more that their environments are somewhat unforgiving for non combatants, since a Vargr has to likely be willing to fight to protect what he considers important (enough to do so), and recognizing that importance, to himself, or his pack.
A Vargr's competence doesn't have to be purely in direct combat, it could also be in a support role.
It's the command aspect that might require some demonstrated combat expertise.
In terms of actual command, capabilities could be built up by young Vargr in socializing, and finding out how to win friends and influence peers, culminating in leading posses and cliques.
If you view military service for Vargr as something as formalized as we have in the industrialized West, where the rich and/or capable are trained as officers in established military academies, that seems unlikely.
