Imperial Navy (FT)

From Ordic Encyclopedia
Imperial Navy
 
Teikoku Uchuugun

Ensign of the Imperial Navy
Active 150 - Present
Country New Greater Empire
Type Spacy
Role Space warfare
Size 130,945,600
Headquarters Naval Central Command Kaguya, Kaguya, Eienkyo
March Imperial Naval March
Engagements Empire-Federation War
War of Imperial Reunifcation
Second Hyperpower War
Empire-Hierarchy War
Empire-Union War
Coreward Frontier Incident
Commanders
Empress Shizuna
Imperial Grand Marshal Kawamura Masaki
Chief of Naval Operations GADM Hijikata Minori
Minister of the Navy ADM Ichioka Katsuro
Insignia
Aerospacecraft roundel
Imperial Emblem
Low-Visibility Emblem
The Imperial Navy (   ; Teikoku Uchuugun), often referred to as the Imperial Navy, is the space warfare branch of the New Greater Empire. It is also known as the Imperial Spacy or Imperial Armada. The Imperial Navy is one of the largest and most capable space warfare forces in the known galaxy, and is often considered the most powerful within the Human Sphere and the galactic outer core region. It has a fleet numbering several hundred warships and 34.7 million personnel.

Formed in 150 as part of the Cultural Restoration that transformed the Eastern Federation into the Greater Empire, the Imperial Navy has its roots in the Federation Starfleet forces that remained loyal to the Eastern Federation following the Surabaya Affair and the subsequent Federation Civil War. The Imperial Navy became instrumental in policing and defending the newly-formed Greater Empire, seeing massive expansions in size and capabilities to the point that it was able to rival the naval forces of the older hyperpowers. When the Federation invaded the Empire during the Empire-Federation War, the Imperial Navy was tasked with defending the Empire against the Federation, but despite its might it was unable to stop the Federation from attacking Eienkyo and destroying the Imperial capital city, killing the Emperor and much of the government. The Imperial Navy subsequently retreated to the edges of Imperial Space along with the remnants of the military and government apparatus, continuing to act as the space warfare arm of the Imperial Remnant movements. With the splintering of the Imperial Remnant movement into various factions and warlords, the Imperial Navy also broke apart during the Period of Honourable Resistance. However, under the visionary leadership of then-Crown Prince Yoshihide and the newly-appointed Imperial Grand Marshal Kitagawa Aki, the Imperial Navy was consolidated and re-organised by 202, becoming the vanguard of the Imperial forces in the War of Imperial Reunification.

Following the victory of the Empire in the War of Reunification and the Declaration of the New Greater Empire in 206, the Imperial Navy again underwent a period of rebuilding and expansion, leading the way in the Human Sphere for the development of new technologies and space warfare doctrines. With the deployment of the Kamikokuryo-class battleships, the Imperial Navy kick-started the shift in the Human Sphere towards large-scale neo-dreadnoughts that catalysed in the Second Hyperpower War, when the Empire moved to save the Federation from a Union invasion. The Empire-Federation Coalition's victory in this war cemented the Imperial Navy's position as the most powerful space warfare force in the Human Sphere. Subsequently, the Imperial Navy was also involved in the Empire-Hierarchy War, the Empire-Union War, and the Frontier Incident between the Empire and the Chunmin Republic.

Mission

History

Organization

The most senior naval officer is the Grand Admiral, who leads the Imperial Navy General Staff as the Chief of Naval Operations and is immediately under and reports to the Imperial Grand Marshal for military matters. At the same time, the Imperial Navy is represented on the Imperial High Council by the Minister of the Navy, an Admiral who is selected and appointed by the Imperial Navy General Staff. The Minister of the Navy is responsible for representing the Navy's interests in the Imperial High Council, primarily through answering for and securing the Navy's operating budget. The Imperial Navy General Staff is responsible for organizing, recruiting, training, and equipping the Imperial Navy so that it is ready for operation under the commanders of the unified combatant commands.

The Imperial Navy has six primary operational branches, Fleet Operations Command, the Imperial Marines, the Naval Intelligence Branch, Imperial Navy Special Warfare Command, Imperial Navy Warfare Development Command, Transportation and Logistics Command, and Exploration Command.

Combined Fleet

The Akagi-class battleship Makino Maria leading its battlegroup, part of the Expeditionary Flotilla, in the Coreward Frontier

Fleet Operations forms the bulk of the Imperial Navy's combat forces and consist of the four regional commands; the Imperial Navy Central Region Command, Imperial Navy Western Frontier Command, Imperial Navy Southern Command, and Imperial Navy Eastern Command. The Imperial Navy Eastern Frontier Command also controls the Naval Expeditionary Combat Command, which is primarily concerned with patrol operations in the Coreward Frontier.

The Imperial Navy operates 14 combat fleets, each of which are the largest type of operational unit of the Imperial Navy and are commanded by an Admiral. These are the 1st to 10th Fleets (less the 4th and 9th Fleets), the 1st to 4th Border Flotillas, the Capital Defence Fleet (previously known as the 4th Fleet), the Expeditionary Flotilla. Central Regional Command oversees the 1st, 2nd, 7th, and Capital Defence Fleets; Western Frontier Command oversees the 3rd and 6th Fleets and 3rd Border Flotilla, Southern Command oversees the 8th Fleet and the 1st Border Flotilla, and Eastern Frontier Command oversees the 5th and 10th fleets, the Expeditionary Flotilla, and the 2nd and 4th Border Flotilla.

Reconnaissance Formation

All stealth all the time

Naval Pilot Corps

pilot

Assault Troops

The Naval Assault Troops are the Imperial Navy's ground forces branch. There are two formations within the Assault Troops, the Imperial Marines and the Special Naval Landing Force (SNLF). While the Imperial Marines is a large combined-arms force with units capable of a wide array of missions and operations, the SNLF is an independent light infantry force focusing solely on planetary assaults.

Both Imperial Marines and SNLF troopers are sometimes assigned as shipboard security for Imperial Navy vessels, with such mundane postings assigned for both recuperative and punitive contexts. It is more common to see Imperial Marines than SNLF troopers in such roles.

Due to their overlapping missions, there is a major rivalry between the SNLF and the Imperial Marines. The Imperial Marines often view the SNLF as a mob of poorly-equipped infantry unable to participate in proper setpiece battles, while the SNLF views the Imperial Marines as constantly arriving late to the deadly initial assault and overly reliant on expensive equipment.

Imperial Marines

The Imperial Marines is the spaceborne land force branch of the Imperial Navy, responsible for supporting expeditionary and aerospace operations. The Imperial Marines includes large combined arms units equivalent to Imperial Army units, including their own armour, cavalry, artillery, and special operations forces. These units are equipped for sustained terrestrial fighting, and are capable of seizing landing zones before pushing on to seize preliminary objectives while the Imperial Army offloads its heavy equipment. Besides surface warfare, many Imperial Marines units are trained and equipped for combat in microgravity situations, and can carry out boarding actions or fighting on space stations.

There are also Imperial Marines units responsible for security on Imperial Navy warships and installations, as well as Imperial government installations that require spaceborne military protection. The Imperial Marines also have two special forces units, the Imperial Marines Commandos are the special forces unit of the Imperial Marines, alongside the Imperial Marines Assault Reconnaissance Division.

Special Naval Landing Force

The Special Naval Landing Force (SNLF) is an independent light infantry force that solely carries out space-to-surface assaults, as well as light terrestrial reconnaissance. During planetary invasions, the SNLF deploys from space and seizes beachheads, such as landing sites and spaceports, to facilitate the deployment of larger Imperial Marines or Imperial Army formations. The SNLF is also sometimes employed to assault important targets separate from the main invasion force, or to destroy enemy surface defences prior to a large-scale aerospace invasion. Due to the nature of their mission, SNLF units often suffer major casualties.

The SNLF includes both assault lander troops and orbital diver units. The SNLF orbital diver battalions are known as Raiding Groups, and are often considered a de facto special forces unit despite not being officially labelled as such. As they are not expected to advance far from the landing sites and drop zones, SNLF units lack heavy armour and are not intended to hold ground unsupported for long. However, there have been cases where SNLF units have been forced to participate in planetside offensives as light infantry due to wider strategic difficulties.

SNLF units have a strong esprit de corps and unit culture, with many having an unwillingness to surrender. SNLF troops rarely provide shipboard security, though some units have been assigned to such a role for recuperation purposes.

Imperial Navy Special Forces

The Imperial Navy Special Forces, also known as Imperial Navy Commandos, are the Imperial Navy's highest tier of special forces troops. These recruit from the elite forces of the Marines and the SNLF, with less than 5% passing the gruelling selections. Imperial Navy Commandos are capable of a wide range of missions, most of which are fully classified.

The most famous unit in the Imperial Navy Commandos is the Umibozu Unit, which has a centuries-long history dating to old Yamatai.

Support Formations

Besides Fleet Operations and the Imperial Marines, the Naval Intelligence Branch, Imperial Navy Special Warfare Command, Imperial Navy Warfare Development Command, Transportation and Logistics Command, and Exploration Command are all regarded as support formations. Three fleets are commanded by support formations, the Logistics Flotilla, the Transportation Flotilla, and the Exploration Flotilla, though these are highly decentralised and are largely administrative in nature.

Headquartered on Onogoro, the Imperial Navy Warfare Development Command is the main research and development branch of the Navy. It is divided into the Tactical Warfare Development Centre, which oversees development of new warships, weapons, and small craft, the Strategic Warfare Development Centre, which oversees logistics and long-term strategic planning, and the Terrestrial Warfare Development Centre, which oversees development for the Marines.

The largest single formation within the entire Navy, the Transportation and Logistics Command oversees a massive array of support functions ranging from providing equipment maintenance, maintaining fuel, food, and other supplies and storehouses, operating the fleet resupply vessels of the Logistics Flotilla, as well as overseeing and operating the Transportation Flotilla, which includes all transport vessels operated by the Navy. The resources and sub-units of the Transportation and Logistics Command are highly decentralised, and are distributed and attached to the various combat fleets and other formations as required.

Imperial Navy Exploration Command oversees the Exploration Flotilla, which is comprised of seven squadrons tasked with exploring beyond Imperial Space.

Personnel

Imperial Navy pilots in pressurised flight suits (note the low-visibility Imperial Mon on their uniforms)

The Imperial Navy has approximately 34.7 million personnel, one of the largest in the Human Sphere. Of those on active duty, roughly 60 percent are enlisted naval crew, 10 percent are commissioned naval officers, 25 percent are Imperial Marines of both officer and enlisted ranks, and 5 percent are cadets of the Imperial Naval Training Centres, officer candidate ensigns from the Imperial Navy Academy on Eienkyo or the Imperial Naval Warfare School on Ishigaki, and pilot cadets at the Onogoro Imperial Aerospace Pilots Academy.

Pilot Corps

There is a fierce rivalry between the spaceborne-only pilots and aerospace-capable pilots. Spaceborne pilots pride themselves on riding Imperial deathtraps through the hostile environment of space and the skill required to operate in zero-G all the time. Aerospace pilots pride themselves on the skill needed to operate in-atmosphere and to know how to fight in both space and the atmosphere. Spaceborne pilots slam their aerospace counterparts as only running strike missions for the Army, while aerospace pilots slam their spaceborne counterparts as nothing more than drones relying on computers to do the flying for them (due to the greater AI assistance and hard-limitations in place during spaceborne flight to prevent pilots from killing themselves with over-G).

Facilities

The Imperial Navy operates facilities in every star system under the Empire's control. These fall into three broad categories, Naval Stations, Naval Bases, and Naval Terrestrial Installations.

Naval Stations

Naval Bases

An Akagi-class battleship undergoing maintenance at the Imperial Navy drydock over Hourai

Naval Terrestrial Installations

The Imperial Navy also operates some facilities located on the surface of planets and moons. These are typically headquarters and administrative facilities, development centres, schools, medical facilities, storehouses, and other such support structures. The bulk of the Navy's terrestrial installations are operated by the Imperial Navy Marines, which maintain several training facilities, bases, and support complexes on all of the Imperial planets.

Equipment

Ships

Small Craft

Weapons

See also

Imperial Military

Human Sphere

Non-Human