A Hautmann, or Captain, as they are sometimes known to the public, is the commander
of a company. He is the last officer that will consistently see battle on a day-to-day
basis. As a result, he is accorded the greatest respect by the enlisted and non-com
officers. His Insignia is similar to the First Leutenant's, except both interior
triangles are blackened to show his increased importance.
Kommandants, also called Commanders or Majors, are usually chosen from among battalion commanders for their mental
skills in such areas as tactics or logistics. The grade is represented by a Hauptmann's
spear point with a single horizontal bar above it.
The rank of Hauptmann-Kommandant, is usually reserved for the senior battalion
commander in a regiment. This officer's responsibilities are to ensure that the
regiment fully understands the orders of his Colonel and that the Colonel and his
staff are fully aware of the situation on the battlefield. The Hauptmann-Kammandant
wears an all-black spear point on his sleeves. This is the last rank that useses sleeve
insignia.
Senior Officers
The remaining ranks form the senior officer grades. Charged with the weighty task
of preventing any threats to the realm, senior officers must often make decisions
that could result in the deaths of countless young men and women. Those senior
not directly involved in combat must oersee equally important tasks sucj as
ensuring the proper flow of supplies or coordinating the efforts of units light
years distant.
Leutenant-Colonel if the lowest rank among senior officers. As a regiment's
second-in-command, he is in charge of information-gathering as well as ensuring
that the regiment is properly supplied and equipped. If the battle is particualary
difficult, the Leutenant-Colonel will somtimes be given the command of certain
crucial regimental units. The insignia of the Leutenant-Colonel is a single silver pip,
an elongated diamond-shaped piece of metal worn on the collar of field uniforms.
As commander of a regiment, the Colonel must be an expert in both tactics and
strategies, as well as seeing that his unit is fed, clothed, and properly equipped.
Colonels of a 'Mehc Regiment are often assigned command of a world's entire defense.
Though these combat officers can win great glory and public admiration when
successful, their defeats can sometimes mean the loss of an entire Commonwealth planet,
and so they also have most to lose. Colonels wear two silver pips.
Leutenant-Generals act as aides to the commanders of the Commonwealth's four interior
Military Districs. They are responsible for marshalling all support units as well as
commanding reserve and garrison units on planets in the district. Leutenant-General
is the lowest rank at which an officer can assume command of an entire service branch,
such as Millitary Inteligence or the Rep-Dep Coprs. A Leutenant-General wears an additional
third pip placed point down beneath the other two pips, forming a "T" on the wearer's collar.
The commanders of the four Military Districts in the interior of the Commonwealth are usually
Hauptmann-Generals. Their duty is to ensure the protection of civilian, industrial, and
military targets against an enemy attack. It is also their responsibility to blunt enemy
offensives long enough for the stronger Theater forces to regroup and counterattack.
These officers wear four pips, forming what has come to be known as the First Steiner Cross.
Kommandant-General is the rank given to the aide of a Margrave in one of the Military
Theaters running along the borders of the Commonwealth. Kommandant-Generals must see
to it that all the units in the theater are well supplied. They also command reserve
and garrison units of every planet within the theater. Kommandant-Generals wear the
Second Steiner Cross, which differs from the first because of the addition of the
Black Pearl, named after a nickname given to a Stealth battalion leader, Angela Franks,
who's sacrifice gave enough time for her wounded battalions to escape Kurita's Assualt.
General is the rank given to commanders of the all-important Theaters of Operations on
the Lyran Borders. These Generals have the title of Margrave, but is a political title
relating to function in the Theater and not one permanently bestowed on the officer.
Generals are usually the last officers that command specific combat units. They wear
the Third Steiner Cross, which differs from the scond by the addition of an 'orbit', a
disc of silver, beneath the cross's center.
Except for the Archon, General of the Armies is the highest rank in the LCAF. This
rank is reserved for the core of the high command, who are the military's most senior
and respected officers. Under the Archon's leadership, Generals of the Armies shape
and guide the Commonwealth's military strategy. Their insignia is the Fourth Steiner
Cross. This is formed by adding a second orbit, made from Tharkan obsidian, beneath the
cross's center.
The Archon is the Commander of the LCAF, and so usually plays an active part in the
military and its actions. Most Archons are well aware, too, that the army is as much
a bureaucracy as it is a fighting force, which requires that they attend carefully
to the politics within the LCAF. The command and rank of the Archon is shown by the Final
Steiner Cross. This insignia is made distinct from those of senior officers by dividing
the four pips of the cross into halves, and filling the space between them with gold.
In some special circumstances, the Archon may not be able to make vital military
decisions; in that case, the Pro Tem carries out the task. As a mark of the higest trust,
the Archon allows the Commander Pro Tem to wear the Final Steiner Cross on his uniform.
That way, all who see the cross know that the wearer is in command and that his
decisions are backed by the Archon's full support and power.
