Otherworld Expeditionary Force or O.E.F

Formed by the Conclave when the need for resources beyond Earth were growing the Otherworld Expeditionary Force (OEF) are tasked with exploring, cataloguing and conquering other worlds via the multiversal gate system (MGS). This army ranges from poorly equipped grunts to elite marines equipped with power armour of varying size classes and heavy weaponry.

THE MULTIVERSAL GATE SYSTEM

The OEF was founded in around 1855 shortly after the MGS was activated. The larger percentage of its numbers would be filled with conscripts taken from prisons; poorly trained men and women given basic weaponry and equipment. They would be led by officers with long histories of loyalty to the Conclave.

At first, the OEF suffered. Waging war on a hostile alien world was a new endeavor but the Conclave were ruthless and favored the tactic as exemplified by General Z Brannigan which consists of throwing soldiers at any problem until it ceases to be a problem. The natives of Otherworld fought back with their own technology or magic and fought well, but the OEF could not be stopped for long. They would learn. They would adapt. And they would conquer.

An OEF Infantryman

THE EVOLUTION OF THE OEF

As weapons and armour technology evolved on Earth the OEF would evolve too. The Conclave had access to weaponry and armour systems decades ahead of any Earthly nation (which is hardly suprising as they were the ones who controlled things) and ensured the OEF recieved the very best.

At first the soldiers were armed with rifles supported with cannons. But year by year the technology improved. The greatest inovation came in the early twenty-first century with exoskeletons that creduced fatigue and allowed the soldiers to wield heavier weaponry as well as increasing their mobility. Then came power armour that increased strength and resilience and in the cases of the larger versions turned the wearer into walking tanks. Combat drones armed with lethal explosive payloads and sniper rifles gave valuable support to the infantry. Even the average infantryman wields state of the art high capacity assault rifles with a choice of rounds including air-burst explosives as well as sporting body armour.

With each new technological breakthrough the OEF grew stronger and were able to truly engage the myriad enemies of Otherworld on the field of battle.

To summarise, the OEF is an army unlimited by notions of honourable conduct, human rights and the Geneva Convention and were armed with state of the art weaponry. Little wonder then that they are amongst one of the most dangerous fighting forces on Otherworld.

THE OEF TODAY

It has been two hundred years since the Conclave began its multidimensional conquest and in that time the OEF has committed countless atrocities in the name of saving the Earth and humankind. Countless OEF soldiers have been lost, torn apart by wild animals, slain in battle or killed by hostile environments. Despite the dangers of enlisting to many citizens life in the OEF is the only other option available to a life of crushing boredom and unemployment.

Albion remains as the primary barracks of the OEF and recruits travel there after basic training on Earth where they will be assessed and tested to determine whether they will join the basic infantry or recieve enhanced training to become the Special Marines. The Special Marines are the ones with access to the exoskeletons and power armour of various grades; they are the elite and to join them is usually what most recruits aspire to.

Propaganda paints the OEF as being daring adventurers, heroes journeying to another world in service to humanity and braving alien horrors and menaces, risking life and limb to provide for a better tomorrow.

Once enlisted, reality sets in and no amount of lies and propaganda can disguise the truth.

The OEF are conquerors who invade nations and butcher the natives so the land may be ripped apart and robbed of resources leaving wastelands in their wake. For some the OEF is a dream come true, a chance to kill without remorse in service to a greater good whilst escaping a life of drudgery on Earth. For others, it is just a job. One that doesn't pay that much and will likely kill them before their tour is over. The Conclave provide their soldiers a cocktail of combat drugs that ostensibly eliminate hunger and fatigue but also increase bloodlust and anger. After a while most soldiers become happy little murderers, transformed into tools more suitable for the grim task set for them.

Of course, not all OEF soldiers obey without question. Many go native or AWOL, unable to stomach the carnage and haunted by the terrible things they have seen and done. Such turncoats are mercilessly hunted but many escape the wrath of their former masters. Some offer their knowledge and skills to their once erstwhile enemies, teaching them the tactics of the OEF to give them an edge in the endless war. The more dangerous set themselves up as rulers on primitive worlds, using their technological superiority and intelligence. Such self-proclaimed Kings and Queens invariably run afoul when a local God or powerful entity shows up to question their sovereignty.

If whole units or battalions of OEF turn the Conclave invariably responds with dispatched Praetorian Kill Teams. For all their technological might, OEF soldiers are still human whilst the Praetorians have been created to be the ultimate killing machines. Whilst such incidents are rare they have occurred and in all of them, the Praetorians have emerged victorious with minimal casualties. This has bred a certain antipathy between the two forces, one the Conclave sees no reason to ease.

OEF Special Marine in Templar-Class Armour

THE OEF PENAL REGIMENT: THE LAST CHANCERS

Criminals on Earth who face death for their transactions will sometimes be offered a choice; service in the OEF Penal Regiment or death. Of course most go for the latter, embracing the extension of life over the certainty of death. Of course, service in the OEF Penal Regiment, the Last Chancers, is invariably short and very brutal. But if they can survive ten years in the Last Chancers they are pardoned and can return to Earth or stay on Otherworld as free citizens. Most Last Chancers do not last more than a month and to date no-one has managed to survive the full ten.

The Last Chancers are thrown into battle with no care or forethought. They are the front line of most OEF engagements. They either fight and live or they die. If they fight and live they can do it again and again until they die. When it comes to exploring ruins, or underground stygian vaults it is the Last Chancers who go in first, herded forward by Commanders who see them as expendable resources who may just manage to make something of their worthless lives and spare the more valuable OEF regulars who follow them. They will map out new regions, face new threats and determine the strength and mind of the enemy by dying in droves. For their commanders, their lives are nothing. There are always more convicts shipped through the Multiversal Gate from Earth, more dregs to throw into the fire.

Despite their expendability and reputation as being nothing more than meat shields and cannon fodder, the Last Chancers become close knit fighting units, brothers and sister bound together by a bloody minded determination to not give in and go down fighting. They make do with meagre equipment and fight harder than anyone, sometimes showing stunning acts of bravery and camaraderie that can inspire even the regular OEF.

NOTEABLE OEF ENGAGEMENTS

The Battle of Fort Samhanra March 13th 2106

A legendary engagement between a small OEF garrison and hordes of the incredibly hostile and brutal Orcs of the Tuthgar Clan. Ten thousand Orcs armed with spears, bows and arrows, clubs and crude axes versus OEF infantry armed with assault rifles, grenades and sheer grit. And artillery support. That last part tends to be ignored. The Orcs were wiped out with only minimal casualties amongst the OEF. The Orcs, remarkably, saluted the victorius regiment and considered the battle "good fun".

The Massacre at Grimpen Swamps

A black mark on the OEF's "illustrious" record in which a full battalion of soldiers were ambushed and killed by the mysterious denizens of the Grimpen Swamp, a vast expanse of fetid marshland and bogs in the realm of Gruhn. Further expeditions to find out what happened to the battalion have suffered extensive casualties with survivors claiming that monsters appeared out of the fog and the water. The Conclave is assessing whether or not to attempt a further campaign into the Grimpen, this time with far greater numbers and more support.

The God Killing

A battle between an OEF strike team managed to slay the newly awoken God of the Druidic Elven people the Nashai. The Nashai all killed themselves after they bore witness to their God's death. Had the OEF strike team failed it is likely this newly risen God would have wrecked havoc.

The Battle of Yiff

A battalion of OEF, predominately Special Marines in Templar-Class armour and Giant-Killer Class Armour, laid waste to the Yiffians, the human-animal hybrids of this region. The strange mix of human-animals came in garish colours, were sexually promiscuous and fierce warriors and were seen as a menace even by the people of Otherworld. Many of the Special Marines had to undergo extensive psychiatric help and treatment at the horrors they witnessed. The Conclave is considering abandoning this region entirely. There's just not enough bleach.

OEF Special Marine in Giant Killer-Class Armour (known affectionally as the Big Boy)

Type

Special Forces