Nobles by SOC as Military Enlisted

[MThompson016]

Question for how you folks handle it: A noble scion joins the military and serves as a common solider/marine/spacer.

How would you handle this?

GT: Ground Forces has an example character statted out, the younger son of the Duke of Star Lane who doesn't care for his standing in life, and joins the Imperial Marines. There's also a sidebar on nobility and the Marines that includes a short vignette about this guy.

Sector Fleet, while useful, doesn't give much of a leg up here. It notes that formally it's (Rank/Rate) (Noble Title) (Name), (Noble Rank), so Norris would have been Commander Lord Norris Aella Aledon, before his retirement to replace his father.

GT: Nobles also provides some clues, and notes that it does happen.

My general rules of thumb:
-On duty, they would be addressed by rank/grade/position as appropriate.
-Off Duty, they can either play as a regular troop, or else getting the invites to the fun parties in the nice part of town.

Also, I'm looking at why a noble scion would join the military as a regular troop. Other than the "I want to get the heck out of my home subsector" reason, that just isn't what I'm looking for.

 

[Uren]

A young noble might want to prove himself on his own, or want to be free of the social demands of his class, or even just want the camaraderie of free and easy friends who don't worry about social class or behaving themselves.

I would handle it by requiring him to enlist under a false name.

 

[Timerover51]

I cannot say that I have ever thought about that sort of issue. A lot would depend on how you handle Nobles in your Traveller Universe. If the eldest son/daughter inherits the title and all that goes with it, the younger siblings might be effectively on their own upon reaching majority, and find themselves having to actually do something for a living.

If that is the case, then a younger son enlisting as a common enlisted person makes some sense. His or her idea would be to demonstrate by their service to the powers that be that they are deserving of a fief of their own. They would tend to be much more adventurous and willing to take chances than the common trooper, to get the recognition that they desire. They might also be trying to show the title-holding parent that they should get a piece of the pie, if the title-holder has multiple titles and fiefs.

There are records of disgraced nobles and other nobles joining the French Foreign Legion just for the sake of adventure and doing something different. You also have the Phule's Company series by Robert Asprin to drawn on for an example.

 

[kilemall]

Noblesse Oblige by blood trial.

 

[aramis]

I've always assumed they wound up in NCO slots pretty quick...
but then, I also forbid advanced CGen.

 

[mike wightman]

'I don't care if you are the son of a duke, get your toothbrush and get that bathroom floor fit to eat off'

 

[kilemall]

'I don't care if you are the son of a duke, get your toothbrush and get that bathroom floor fit to eat off'

Hardcore tough nobles probably insist their progeny go through it to broaden their perspective, ability to rule, understand the lower classes and not end up a useless lump of political connivery.

Most noble parents probably don't want to risk their children that way.

 

[AnotherDilbert]

The old boys network will take care of him. Superiors will do him favours to curry favour with his father, whether sought or not.

Someone will try to get him a commission. Someone will get him the cushiest assignments. Someone will make sure he is not killed.

Unless he is a black sheep who has been publically disavowed by his family...

If he actually want to slum it with the grunts, he had better be incognito.

 

[welsh]

Question for how you folks handle it: A noble scion joins the military and serves as a common solider/marine/spacer.

How would you handle this?

I wouldn't. That is to say, it's not possible in the culture of my TU.

Nobles receive commissions by virtue of being nobles. The culture of nobility is such that they do not enjoy the freedom to join up as enlisted marines; to do so would disgrace you.

For a noble to become a common spacer or soldier, he'd have to either be disgraced (i.e. no longer a noble; SOC is reduced) or incognito. So you could have a disgraced noble do this, which would make for an interesting character, but not the son of a duke who then inherits the duchy.