Imperial Army

The largest military in the Inner Sea area in terms of absolute numbers, and potential fighting ability, the Imperial Army is the professional fighting force of The Empire of Belyos. Whilst currently the Empire has no perceivable external threats, almost seven hundred years ago, when the Empire failed, the subsequent anarchy and Sakamohr invasion had solidified a desire amongst many imperials to never let that happen again.
Every Imperial soldier takes an oath before Yaltur to 'protect the Empire from all threats, inside or outside' and as such, the Imperial Army has two main functions; to patrol and defend the borders of the Empire, and to prevent internal conflict from destabilising the Empire.

Structure

The head of the Imperial Army is known as a Legate, and whilst the office is housed in Belyos, Legates (and their staff) often travel the Empire visiting army units and ensuring standards are kept up and local commanders are informed and known.
The largest organisational structure is the Legion, consisting of approximately five thousand soldiers, and led by a General. There are, at the current date, 60 Legions, giving a total approximate number of troops of three hundred thousand. Legions are spread throughout the Empire at Garrison Forts, which are directly controlled by the Empire. All Elector State capitals have a Garrison Fort, with some at key points on the Imperial borders; the Fort at Enim is unique in that it houses five Legions at any given time, with another four patrolling in Sakamohr during the summer months when the pass is open.
A Legion consists of ten cohorts of five hundred soldiers each led by a Captain. Six cohorts are heavy infantry, two are light infantry, and there are one each of heavy and light cavalry. One of the heavy infantry cohorts specialises in building siege equipment, and another in building engineering works such as bridges and roads. Of the light infantry, one will be designated for scouting and the other for screening, although they are expected to rotate this duty. A cohort is further split into five Centuries of one hundred soldiers led by a Centurion, which are divided into ten Decimus led by a Decanus.
Decimus are the smallest military unit, and the soldiers in a decimus are rewarded and punished as a whole. The duties of a decimus varied between centuries and cohorts, but typically eight are active combat soldiers, with two auxiliaries to provide support in terms of food and supplies. Most auxiliaries are women, but both men and woman can serve in any role. In critical situations, even auxiliaries are expected to be able to fight, and so must have rudimentary combat training in addition to their other skills.

Rank is shown in helmet shape: soldiers and decanus have a basic helmet shown on the left, Centurions in the middle, and Captains and Generals on the right. The length of the plume and its colour denote actual rank.

Founding Date

1704

Type

Military, Army

Training Level

Professional

Parent Organization

The Empire of Belyos

Related Ethnicities

• Imperial