Die Kriegshölle

Everyone who is familiar with the militaries of the Western Kingdoms know that the toughest soldiers in the world are the Thuringian The Schwartzenjager.  But they don't always start that way.  Instead, they are recruited from many walks of life and sent to training known as Jagerschule.  Here they are taught war in the field based on their specialty based on a combination of classes in what are translated as "the four towers" of arms, magic, theology, and stealth.  This is significantly more training than most militaries give their soldiers, but the SchwartzenJager take it a step further, ensuring that classes are not merely conducted in theory but practiced in the field.  It is a hard training and many simply don't complete it. 
However completion is no simple task.  When a student is deemed to have completed their training they are sent to their new unit but not allowed to fully join until they have completed "die Kriegshölle."  Translated to mean "the war hell" this is the final test of a Schwartzenjager, and it gives the new unit and commander the chance to observe the new soldier in action.
The Kriegshölle consists of some daring field work that the unit must occasionally engage in together.  It is not made intentionally harder for the recruit, but it is a difficult task that the unit engages in enough that they need to be able to count on them to do their part. This part does not change regardless of the sex of the soldier, and females are treated fairly in this fashion.  It might be to swim ashore from a darkened ship in full gear, then engage in combat.  It might be climbing a mountain in the middle of the night and engaging the enemy by surprise.  Whatever is chosen by the commander, it is chosen with care to ensure that the unit does not fail and that the new soldier is not killed.  The trial is difficult but so is the life of the Schwartzenjager.
After the battle is complete, the unit retires to a bar and carouses late into the night, and a tattoo is given to the new soldier.  The soldier usually picks the insignia for the Schwartzenjager, and chooses somewhere he wants it placed.  Occasionally, a soldier that suspects he may spend some time in covert action may choose not to have the tattoo applied.  Sometimes it happens that the soldier is so drunk they get it put someplace embarrassing!
Regardless, at this point, the fully anointed Schwartzenjager has an honorary medal pinned to his clothes by his peers.  The medal consists of two brass spheres connected and hung by a brass chain, and referred to as the soldiers "Große Messing" or "Big Brass Ones."  The soldier is then considered a Schwartzenjager in full standing, no matter what unit they transfer to.  If one is said to have their "Big Brass Ones" they are treated with respect.

"My Kriegshölle was to climb an iced up mountainside in the middle of winter with the rest of my unit in full gear and attack a dark elf camp from the unguarded side.  I almost fell twice, the first time I caught myself, the second time my unit caught me with me rope.  I didn't scream, I would have died first.  They didn't even say anything we just kept going right up that cliff.  I never heard a word about it afterward either.  That's the way it is."
~Anonymous