Planetary Combat Team

Planetary Combat Teams are squads of troopers belonging to the Golden Alliance faction of Mahou Galaxy

Planetary Combat Team
A typical Golden Alliance Planetary Combat Trooper.
Faction	Golden Alliance
Type	Infantry
Role	General Operations

Overview

With thousands of planets under their umbrella of protection, the Golden Alliance must field a large armed force ready to deal with pirates, terrorists, large-scale criminals, various monsters that might attack their worlds, and other factions trying to claw territories or resources away from them. While they train and equip a number of specialized units, the majority of their troops are given standardized training and equipment to ensure that they are a well-rounded fighting force that can work well with units from other parts of the galaxy and handle a wide variety of potential battlefield roles.

History

The Golden Alliance Army can directly trace its roots back to the initial formation of the Golden Alliance, when in the year BC253 the fledgling faction rolled the Terran Unitied Army, created in BC374 as Terra's remaining nations merged into a single world government, and the Grand Army of Mythar, which was created in BC974 when King Hightower restructured the disparate Mytharian corps to create a more unified worldwide fighting force. This joining together was both a tactical move to grant both forces the technology and magic the other possessed and a diplomatic gesture to ease the transition to the new Golden Alliance government while assuaging their citizens of their fear of the threats that a newly opened galaxy presented. The promise of tours of duty that took soldiers to alien planets was enough to spark the greatest increase in enlistment numbers in either planet's history, and this quickly growing force provided the muscle for the Golden Alliance to stand toe-to-toe with most threats they encountered. It was a Planetary Combat Team that unseated Urus Magnus to win the Uruseiyan war, and it was thousands upon thousands of Planetary Combat Teams that fought tooth and nail to prevent Legion from overwhelming the entire galaxy. As more planets joined the GA, the protocol quickly became to roll the majority of that planet's troops into PCTs while allowing that planet's most elite troops to serve in specialized units utilizing their unique cultural tactics and weapons. Though these cultural squads will often outshine the humble PCT in terms of equipment and skill, the sheer number and regular training of the Combat Teams make them a good fit for any commander in any situation and thus nearly any Golden Alliance Army force will boast a substantial number of PCTs.

Capabilities

Planetary Combat Troopers are trained from early adulthood in multiple facets of ground combat. Their strength lies in the combination of their diversity and their standardization, with any individual team comprised of a variety of different races all trained to understand and take advantages of their squadmates' unique capabilities while covering for any shortcomings they may have. While any enemy commander will be aware of a PCT's weapons and armor, each team might be full of surprises in the form of members with unique terrain traversal, extraordinary senses, or even magical spells at their disposal. It is impossible to guess the precise combat capabilities of any given Planetary Combat Team prior to engagement.

Equipment

AML-530 Combat Rifle

The primary armament of the modern Planetary Combat Trooper is the Royal Dwarforge AML-530, a compact and high-capacity mahoulaser battle rifle built in a bullpup configuration. Powered by a common F4-sized mahoubattery, the MLR-530 can fire up to 600 times before its battery must be recharged or swapped out, and extra batteries or even portable generators are commonly-carried pieces of equipment for Planetary Combat Teams. The AML-530 also features a collapsible energy shield that provides cover to the user's face or center mass when deployed. This shield utilizes a different element of mahou energy than the mahoulaser coils and thus does not consume energy stores that would normally go to those coils. Though not the most easily modified weapon, some troopers nonetheless have rigged their battle rifles to overcharge the firing coils or shield generator, hold a series of mahoubatteries wired in series, or add biowarp charging ports to the gun's handgrips to facilitate manual recharging or magical shot enhancement. These modifications violate the GA Army's regulations and most are made to be quickly removed for inspection.

MLH-615 Pistol

Each Planetary Combat Trooper is also issued a Royal Dwarforge MLH-615 mahoulaser pistol, a sidearm which lacks the punch of the AML-530 but makes up for it with its compact and discrete nature. Many commanders or field specialists prefer the use of this handgun as it is designed to be operated with a single hand, freeing their other arm for the use of command body language or operation of various battlefield devices. The smaller B2-sized mahoubattery provides a lesser 80 shots before being drained, but this is typically enough for low-risk deployments and a Combat Trooper on duty is expected to be strapped with their sidearm at all times.

MLA-033 Submachine Gun

Many specialists and commanders, as well as the occasional soldier who prefers to go guns akimbo in combat will trade their MLH-615 sidearm for the bulkier MLA-033 automatic mahoulaser handgun. This one-handed SMG sacrifices the light weight and precise aim of the MLH-615 for an increase in the number of shots fired thanks to its B6-sized mahoubattery and full automatic firing while keeping the gun roughly sidearm-sized. It does this through the addition of a large mahoucapacitor bank near the gun's firing nozzle. This allows the weapon to discharge up to a dozen mahoulaser bolts in rapid succession, depending on how long the mahoucapacitor bank has had to charge. This makes the MLA-033 best suited for providing cover fire or as a means of convincing a swarm of advancing enemies to reconsider long enough to complete an objective. Users are trained to avoid holding the capacitor bank to stabilize the MLA-033, as after successive shots it becomes incredibly hot.

RML-70 Rotary Cannon

PCTs have a wide variety of specialized weapons, most designed and manufactured by the Royal Dwarforge corporation or one of its many subsidiaries, and perhaps the most imposing of these weapons is the RML-70, a massive rotary mahoulaser cannon that must be wielded two-handed by all but the strongest troopers. Using a massive K-30 mahoubattery to provide a steady stream of power to its six rotary barrels, the RML-70 can spit out a constant barrage of deadly mahoulaser bolts without pausing to cool or reload for minutes at a time. To help accomplish this feat, each barrel is equipped with a trio of heat-dispersing fins that run down its length. These fins are actuated, working with the gun's internal computer to flex in and out in time with the barrels' rotation to provide gyroscopic stabilization to the gun, detecting when its user is attempting to swing it around or sweep across an area and shifting its center of balance to hasten the motion. As a result, those trained in the use of the RML-70 characterize the weapon as one eager to move on to its next target, providing a heavy punch against armored targets and cover fire against large groups with equal efficiency.

EML-204 Sniper Rifle

The weapon most feared by the enemies of the Golden Alliance is also one of its least seen, the EML-204. Rather than being down to its rarity, this is due to the weapon's nature as a long-range, stealthy rifle with capabilities that make it deadly in the hands of a trained sniper. Though it is as large and cumbersome as one might expect from a sniper rifle, its thrust-propulsion bipod mounted near the front of the barrel keep the end of the weapon aloft enough to steady it regardless of the height of its rear end, which allows the user to maintain the precision that would normally be lost at shorter ranges. Featuring a parallel set of mahoucapacitors to lend an incredible punch to each of its shots, the EML-204 runs off the same F4-size mahoubattery as the AML-530 but with an additional pair mounted in the stock that can be quickly ejected during close engagements, lowering its standard magazine size from 60 to a mere 20 but dramatically lightening it. The rail-mounted scope can also be slid back and forth or removed entirely as needed, though its optics provide not only up to 100x magnification but also sensors that can take into account the movement of the target and any magical or technological energy fields that might interfere with a shot. The EML-204's reputation as a hidden killer comes from the massive energy baffle that runs along its barrel. This device filters out extraneous magical energy that could be used to pinpoint its origin, and also greatly reduces the sound and light generated by its bolts.

Golden Alliance Standard Issue Battle Armor

Each Planetary Combat Trooper is equipped with a suit of impact-resistant armor. This armor has many variations including a fully-enclosed variant and a light-bending stealth variant, but the most commonly used armor is the simple "Slugger" battle suit. The main body of this armor is comprised of a flexible mahou-ablaitive bodysuit that completely covers its wearer from the neck down and a series of magnet-clasped rigid armor plates built to absorb concussive shocks and physical strikes by distributing the incoming force through the entire plate. These plates can be individually removed if a plate is damaged enough to impede movement, though some soldiers remove them for comfort or added mobility. The armor is accompanied by a shock-resistant helmet that covers most of the head and has an optional air filter attachment to cover the mouth. This helmet's visor is linked with computers in the armor plates, undersuit, and sensors within the helmet to provide the soldier an unobtrusive heads-up display. The display can be manually reconfigured to suit a variety of needs, but typically paint IFF or AI-designated friendlies and hostiles for quick target acquisition, alert the user of weapons fire or other hazards by giving them a peripheral notification indicating the source of the hazard, provide diagnostics reports from the armor, and show remaining charge for their various mahoubatteries. The helmet includes automatic comms systems, but some troopers forgo the helmet altogether as it can feel a bit confining and the communications functionality can be replicated with a simple earpiece. The armor plates of a trooper's Slugger suit are notoriously solid and smooth, and thus have no pockets or other storage. However, most GA PCTs wear a supplies belt fitted with two or more large hip pockets, grenade carriers, or magnetic weapon holsters. These are typically used to carry additional mahoubatteries, a field repair kit, and a miniature survival kit. This kit contains 12,000 calories of tasteless but nutritious non-expiring rations, water purification tablets, an emergency transmitter beacon, a weather-resistant blanket and a survival multi-tool. Unused survival kits are often given to children of soldiers as gifts.

Deployment

Planetary Combat Teams operate primarily on ground missions, but are also utilized during boarding and counter-boarding missions onboard larger GA naval vessels or stations where artificial gravity is expected to be standardized. These ground-pounding shock troops utilize combat carrier vehicles and orbital drop pods to quickly arrive on the battlefield and engage any hostile forces. As the most standard unit in the galaxy, PCTs see themselves serving in any environment performing any of a number of attack, defense, escort, scouting, or other duties. Due to the inherently volatile nature of galactic politics, a single PCT might be performing a surgical strike against a capital city belonging to a rival faction one week then guarding that city's infrastructure the next. Anywhere there's potential action, you should expect a PCT to be there.

Recruitment

Planetary Combat Troops are recruited across GA territories, and most planets which are part of the faction will house multiple recruitment facilities. Each potential recruit is tested for physical fitness, intelligence, and ability to follow orders and once these tests are passed, they take an oath to protect the Golden Alliance and its citizens and are granted the rank of Private as their training begins. The GA Army basic training is a 3-year course, though troopers who are exceptionally gifted may be plucked from their training and assigned to a specialist squad. Some cultures have a mandatory enlistment period, and for these troops the training period is usually even shorter, as short as 6 months as their more militaristic culture has already prepared them for the duty ahead. During this training, troopers are taught to operate their weapons, deal with various battle simulations, often with real weapons modified to fire nonlethal shots, and take orders from their superior officers. As their training progresses, the recruit pool is broken into individual teams of 5-10 recruits and these teams are expected to operate as a single unit. GA soldiers of this type are on the lower end of the pay scale, but they are given considerable bonuses for combat and as the Army of the Golden Alliance takes care of their basic needs, troopers are typically able to build up a decent savings during their time in the army.

Heraldry

Each division of troopers is given a specific color scheme that the brigades underneath are expected to follow when it comes to painting their armor. These color schemes always feature at least one of the colors gold or silver, and many feature both. Many battalions have additional color schemes, paint patterns, or even insignias that are typically applied to the chestplate and pauldrons, with more experienced squads often wearing more distinctly-colored armor. The leader of a team must have an identifying mark on their armor, typically a heavily contrasting stripe across their helmet or chestplate, while other specialists often have their own individual colors applied to their elbow and knee armor so their teammates can identify them at a distance. Troops that have been in long engagements often lack the materials to properly paint their replacement armor plates, and their armor will feature worn plates intermixed with ones still polished to their original shine.

Game Stats

Planetary Combat Team
Faction	Golden Alliance
Squad	4-6 Units
Cost	10
Type	Trooper
Initiative	d8
Movement	10"
Defense	d6
HP	3
MP	1
Spell Slots	None
Command	2
Keywords	Adaptive, Coordinated
Abilities	The first copy of the cheapest weapon this squad takes with a cost more than 0 costs 0.

AML-530
Cost	0
Attack	2d6
Range	12"
Skill	2
Abilities	None

MLH-615
Cost	0
Attack	1d6
Range	8"
Skill	1
Abilities	Can be fired while squad is carrying or working on objectives.

MLA-033
Cost	1
Attack	2d4
Range	10"
Skill	1
Abilities	Can be fired after melee disengagement when attack action is lost.

RML-70
Cost	5
Attack	5d6
Range	15"
Skill	2
Abilities	Grants squad a Cloak token when fired.

EML-204
Cost	4
Attack	2d12
Range	24"
Skill	1
Abilities	May increase skill dice for this weapon by +1 by spending the squad's movement action.