Household Guard

The Household Guard was a military and law enforcement agency in the Golden Empire. Its primary duty was to protect members of the Royal Household, as well as other members of the Royal Family as directed by the Sovereign. Popular belief held that the Household Guard had one of the most rigorous and difficult training regimens in the Empire.

Background and concept
The Royal Guard of the Golden Empire was established in 105 ABY, consisting of handpicked Centurions of the Order of Keltrayu. The Guard's mission was to protect the person of the Sovereign, although this was later expanded to cover the Phoenix Prince and Royal Executors. Until 140 ABY, only Rin and Tariun Sakaros filled any of these roles.

The installation of Andromeda Keane as a Princess of the Empire in that year raised questions among the Royal Guards about their ability to provide adequate protection. Given Andromeda's age and frailty, Rin assigned her a pair of Royal Guards, thus breaking her own precedent. During visits to the Empire, Nagarian Sakaros was also protected by Royal Guards. The marriage of Tariun to Breek Zagrev and the subsequent birth of their children brought the matter to a head.

Tarzg Sav'lir, by then head of the Royal Guard, proposed training additional Guards to protect the various members of the Royal Household. Tariun and Eskol Kaartinen voiced concerns that training a sufficient number of Guards to provide adequate protection would remove too many Centurions from the field. Tariun initially suggested Rin continue her de facto practice of having the Massassi Cohorts provide protection to those not covered by Royal Guards, but Rin feared continued reliance on the Massassi would give the impression to her people that she did not trust other species.

Solution
The Nightmare War put the discussion on the backburner, but when it was concluded, the issue arose anew. The war had left millions of orphans on devastated worlds such as Klee`shlyoo`hshee and Dolomir; many had been adopted, but others became wards of the state. Tariun proposed recruiting a new guard regiment in infancy, so that its members would be raised with absolute loyalty to Rin and the Empire. He further suggested that the war orphans be the first source of recruits before recruitment was opened to the general public.

In late 151 ABY, Rin finally conceded to the plan and announced the formation of the Household Guard. Insistent that its members be trained from youth, she ordered that the Massassi would continue to provide protective services for her family until the Guard regiment was ready for deployment. An initial activation date was set for 176 ABY.

Ranks
The Household Guard was organized in the Cohort model used by the Royal Army. It was led by a single officer with the rank of Colonel-Commandant. The Commandant's executive officer was a Commander, assisted by three Majors with responsibility for Operations, Logistics, and Intelligence. A second Commander was responsible for overseeing the Household Guard Academy. Other officer ranks were Captain and Lieutenant.

The entry-level rank for all members of the Guard was Guardsman, equivalent to Private in the Army. Guards could be promoted to Lance Corporal, Corporal, Sergeant, or Sergeant Major.

Duties
The foremost responsibility of all Household Guards was the physical protection of members of the Royal Household. Guards accompanied their protectees everywhere and were expected to fight or even die in their defense as needed. Like their Massassi predecessors, the Household Guards were trained never to surrender. The number of Guards who accompanied a given protectee might vary depending on specific circumstances and the protectee's own wishes. However, even if a protectee did not want bodyguards, only the Sovereign could grant that request.

In addition to providing physical security, the Household Guard conducted investigations into threats made against the Royal Family. As such, the Guard worked closely with Royal Intelligence. Guards also conducted preliminary security checks in advance of visits of state by members of the Royal Family. For those Royal Family members who lived on worlds of the Empire, the Household Guard provided protection for their homes at all times, whether or not they were actually present.

Guards had authority to enforce any law relating to the protection of the Royal Family. They carried a variety of weapons and could kill in the line of duty to protect themselves or their charges. Under the Empire's law, assaulting a member of the Royal Family was grounds for an automatic death sentence; though discouraged in practice, Household Guards were allowed to execute even arrested and restrained beings who had assaulted their charges. If necessary to protect a member of the Royal Family, Guards could commandeer any vehicle, either governmental or privately owned, and could enlist the aid of any military or law enforcement personnel nearby.

First phase
All members of the Guard were recruited before reaching one year of age. Like Novices of the Order of Keltrayu, their parents relinquished all ties to them and the children officially became wards of the state. Potentials were taken to the Household Guard Academy on Quadia.

Until reaching the legal age of maturity for their species, recruits had the rank of Cadet. They trained in a controlled environment in what amounted to a junior military academy, focusing on self-discipline, physical fitness, academic education, and military tactics. Cadets were raised to speak Orhyo and. Students trained in combatives almost every day, with special emphasis on marksmanship and Var Shek. Absolute loyalty to the Golden Empire and the Sovereign personally was stressed and constantly reinforced.

As students grew close to the age of majority, more time was devoted to small-unit infantry tactics and military history. Students trained in squads and fireteams, participating in numerous war games and tactical exercises.

Decision point
When a class of Cadets had all reached or neared the age of majority, their performance was evaluated to determine their futures. Previous academic and team accomplishments were combined with a final series of tactical exercises and rigorous academic tests. Based on results, Cadets could receive one of four options.

Those who met or exceeded standards set by the Academy Commander were invited to continue in candidacy to become Household Guards. Cadets were warned that Guard training was held to a higher standard than any other training regimen; candidates either passed or died. Continuing to Guard training was voluntary, but no minimum number was set; if a Cadet declined, the highest-ranked Cadet who had failed to qualify was not invited to take his place.

Cadets who failed to qualify for Royal Guard training but met military standards could pursue two paths. Those with sufficiently high academic scores were invited to attend the Royal Military Academy of their choice. Those with lower test scores were enlisted into the Royal Army. Due to their previous training, Cadets who enlisted started off at the rank of Private First Class or Lance Corporal (depending on aptitude) and had only a week of transition training, rather than the Army's full basic training.

Cadets who consistently failed to meet standards were dismissed months or even years ahead of their qualifying exams. Consistently demanding standards and repeated reminders that failure was unacceptable minimized the number of Cadets who ever failed out.

Second phase
"These are people to whom I'd entrust my family's lives. My sister and my sister-in-law. My brother's children.  Your sisters.  There is no room for second best."

- Rin Sakaros explaining the concept of Household Guard training to Rayne Turgachia

Those selected to continue for Guard training retained the rank of Cadet and moved on to Guard-specific training for a further three years. Greater emphasis was placed on close-range combat, both melee and armed, and physical fitness standards consistently increased. Cadets sparred daily and engaged in tactical exercises to teach personal protection strategies. Though Cadets continued to train in squads and fireteams, they also experienced exercises alone or with only a partner, preparing for every eventuality of protective service. Special emphasis was given to forcing Cadets to face any fears they exhibited, with the ultimate aim of rendering them fearless in combat.

Cadets were trained in law enforcement knowledge and tactics, including law, restraint techniques, and investigative work. They attended training courses in intelligence-gathering conducted by experienced Royal Intelligence operatives, and learned the basics of demolitions, including identifying and disarming various explosives. Numerous courses focused on crowd surveillance and area analysis. Cadets were also taught emergency medicine and lifesaving techniques.

The final months of training brought together all previously gained knowledge in a series of demanding exams. Students were required to subdue attack droids which were allowed to kill them, and were tested on emergency medicine by having members of their squads grievously injured and being forced keep their comrades alive for certain periods of time. In final protective exercises, dummies and droids representing Royal Family members were rigged with explosives which would kill all the Cadets protecting them if the droid "died".

Graduation
After all examinations were completed, surviving Cadets were installed as Household Guards in a formal ceremony. The official transition from Cadet to Guardsman was completed by taking the oath:


 * "I, [name], swear to faithfully, honorably, and diligently serve His/Her Glorious Imperial Majesty [Sovereign's name] and all his/her successors, and to safeguard the lives of my Sovereign and the Royal Family at any cost, even my own life. I will obey the orders of the officers installed over me and the laws of the Golden Empire.  I will never betray my protectees, my comrades, or my oath."

A member of the Royal Family was always required to be present for the swearing-in of new Guards, and accepted the oath and commitment on behalf of the entire Family.

Service
Initial mandatory service for Household Guards was ten years from the date of the oath. Guards below the rank of Corporal could not marry. Guards rotated between direct protective and investigative assignments, and were also sometimes rotated into normal Royal Army units to keep up their professional training. Guards worked closely with both Royal Intelligence and the Royal Guard to fulfill their duties.

After the completion of ten years of service, Household Guards were allowed to resign from the group. Those who continued could apply to become officers. Some post-decade Guards were allowed to rotate temporarily to other government agencies in the interest of professional development.

Guards who completed twenty-five years of service were eligible to retire with benefits. Rin ultimately planned for the Household Guard Academy to be staffed with instructors from the Guard itself, replacing the specialists brought in to train the first generation of Guards.

Equipment
The Household Guard owned a variety of capital ships and smaller craft used to transport its protectees or its own agents on investigations. Guard craft could also be used to intercept civilian vehicles which strayed too close to the shuttles or other craft of Royal Family members. Many Guards trained to pilot shuttles and similar craft, and some also pursued fighter pilot training to fly escort for their charges.

On duty, Household Guards wore black armor including chest plates, pauldrons, bracers, gauntlets, an armored skirt, and leg armor. Their helmets shielded their upper crania and cheeks, but left their faces open so they could see their surroundings. Guards wore electronic headsets under their helmets which included eyepatches and comlinks. The electronic eyepatches were worn over one eye and fed Guards information about their surroundings; they could analyze beings and objects in their immediate vicinity. The two-part comlink included an earplug microphone and a receiver near the mouth.

The standard weapon of the Household Guard was an, a variant of the used by the. Guards could activate a single end for crowd control, or both for more serious fighting, as well as choosing levels of current to hurt, stun, or kill their targets. Guards also carried heavy blaster carbines in holsters and s on their belts. Some Guards elected to wear s rather than traditional gloves. Guards on patrol over Royal residences (rather than personally accompanying Royal Family members) were allowed to carry heavy blaster rifles instead of electrostaves.

In addition to their weapons, Guards carried s for themselves and their protectees, as well as basic first aid equipment and es.

Privileges and restrictions
The Household Guard was the only unit in the entire Armada which answered directly to the Sovereign, bypassing even the Prime Legate. As a military branch, it had ceremonial precedence over all other branches. Its promotions were handled internally; the Colonel-Commandant was appointed by the Sovereign personally.

Household Guards below the rank of corporal could not marry at all. Those ranked Corporal and above could marry only with the permission of the Colonel-Commandant. While desertion during peacetime was normally punished by imprisonment in the Armada, Household Guards would always face execution for desertion, peacetime or war.

Behind the scenes
The design of the Household Guard armor was inspired by armor, to differentiate the unit from the Emperor's Royal Guard and the. The cybernetic eye piece was derived from the Solid Eye in Metal Gear Solid 4.

The development of the Household Guard was influenced by the Emperor's Red Guards, the, the of the , the  of the , and the.