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The Imperial Morsian Army, widely known as the Morsian Army but also as the Imperial Morsian Legions, Imperial Army or just the Morsian Legions, was the land military arm of the Morsian Empire.

History[]

Legio 0
Military of the Morsian Empire
(From 20,000 BBY onwards)
Structural history
Rutilarian reforms · Farranaxian reforms · Reforms of 3,920 · Cracian reforms · Unit types and ranks · Equipment · Legions (Canon · Legends) · Navy (Canon · Legends)
Campaign history
Wars and battles (Canon · Legends) · Civil Wars and rebellions (Canon · Legends)
Strategy and tactics
Infantry tactics
Borders and fortifications
Castellum · Castra · Escensio · Finibus Galacticus (Finibus Septemtrionis Galacticus (Finibus Otega ad Qiilura · Finibus Thanium ad Ashicus · Finibus Meram ad Quelii · Finibus Kanz ad Raioballo) Finibus Coruscanticus · Finibus Teraab ad Trax · Finibus Meridionali Galacticus (Finibus Chommell ad Brema · Finibus Arkanis ad Cadavine · Finibus Lambda ad Bothanicus))
Under different political systems
Royal Morsian Army · Morsian army of the Dictatorship
Morsian army of the First Republic · Imperial Morsian Army (Canon · Legends)
Flag of the Morsian Empire Morsian fanon continuity

Formation[]

The Morsian army had undergone many different changes since its inception as the Royal Morsian Army in around 16,700 BBY. The early millennia of the existence of the army was turbulent as it struggled or succeeded against numerous different foes and armies. It was undergoing constant reforms that changed the structure, unit type, equipment, or numerous other things to keep the army ahead of their enemies.

By the time of the Morsian Empire rising, the army had just fought the civil war to establish it, and so was understrength and damaged. Reconstruction efforts allowed the new imperial regime to consolidate its power over the Morsian lands and deal with any rebellious states who had broken away.

Planetary unification[]

The imperial army was instrumental in uniting Mors under the banner of the Morsian Empire, and defending the empire against several civil wars that broke out prior to unification. By the time of the empire rising, the Morsians were the dominant power on the planet and so had no real threats to their consolidation of all the land on the planet. Over a series of wars, the empire finally united the planet after over five millennia of fighting.

Pax Morsiana[]

After Pax Morsiana was declared, the army found itself being mothballed due to the new era of peace. With no other nations to defend the Morsian borders against, the army found itself a peacetime force, only needing to deal with bandits or crushing potential dangerous uprisings. The number of legions was reduced due to a lack of requirement for them, and legions were stationed near major population zones.

Galactic modernization[]

When the Jedi arrived in 10,000 BBY and introduced the Morsians to the rest of the galaxy, the need for more troops was realized and the legions once again underwent expansion in case of an invasion force arriving to claim Mors for themselves. Various legions were sent as protection forces with Morsian diplomats across the galaxy not only for their own protection but also as a display of strength to warn away anyone from thinking that Mors was undefended.

The army was modernized over 2,000 years with modern technology for the time. Blasters were introduced into the army as well as lightsabers, compact, deployable, personal energy shields and various other technology which raised the Morsian Legions up to galactic standard with regards to technology and equipment, though the structure did not change over that time.

Operations on the Protectorate Planets[]

Morsian Legions saw combat again during the early phases of the Morsian Protectorate Planet program, where those countries who were hostile to the Morsians waged war on those countries working with the Morsians as well as the Morsians themselves. The legions were deployed to protect the allied nations as well as Morsian civilian assets that were rapidly modernizing their allied countries. When not at war on the protectorates, the legions were training natives in the Morsian way of fighting and raising native legions that could do the job of the Morsian Legions in defending their country.

Operations during the Old Sith Wars[]

The Morsian army was most active during the Old Sith Wars of 4,000 BBY when almost all Morsian military forces engaged in combat across the galaxy, both alongside Republic troops but also in independent operations. When the Sith Empire invaded Mors itself with the Siege of Mors in 3,955 BBY, the Legions were rallied to its defense, taking heavy casualties but also dealing far more back to the Sith Empire, eventually routing Sith forces on the planet and ending the siege.

Post-Old Sith Wars operations[]

The legions were mostly engaged in anti-piracy measures in peacetime along with the Imperial Navy and marines, overturning and destroying pirate and privateer bases either in or close to Morsian space. The legions were also 'hired out' to various planets who appealed to the Morsians for help. This occurred when the planet in question was in a civil war and requested help from the Morsians. When the Morsian senate debated the matter and decided to intervene, one or two legions were sent to the planet to train their troops in modern fighting techniques, arm them with modern equipment and improve the infrastructure of the planet. The legions didn't engage in much fighting themselves in these instances unless attacked directly, where they could then defend themselves as normal.

Operations during the Clone Wars[]

The next major combat the legions saw was during the Clone Wars where, though officially neutral, the Morsians engaged in a policy of 'technology gathering' on planets where Republic forces were fighting. This led to legions being sent out as expeditionary forces that fought alongside Republic troops or independently while also collecting equipment from both sides that would be analyzed and reverse engineered back on Mors. The legions distinguished themselves in battles on planets such as Geonosis, Christophsis and Umbara against the battle droids and various Separatist forces they encountered.

Operations during the Galactic Civil War[]

During the cold war phase of the Galactic Civil War, the Morsians kept an eye on the Galactic Empire, training the legions in how to deal with the Imperial Stormtroopers and vehicles. This was mostly conducted against captured variants gained through Morsian spies or against mock-up vehicles created on Mors itself from schematics once again obtained by spies. Thanks to this preparation, when the Morsians declared war against the Empire after the destruction of the first Death Star in 0 BBY, they fared very well when faced against Imperial ground units. Initially, the legions were concentrated in the immediate area around Morsian space, but soon pushed out after securing their galactic area. Despite being numerically outnumbered by the Imperial troops, the legions were unable to be stopped by the Imperial forces as they made steady progress into more and more Imperial held sectors of the galaxy.

Operations against the First Order[]

Likewise, when the First Order appeared from the remnants of the Empire and were instantly at war with the Morsians, their new Stormtroopers fared just as poorly against the legions. Despite having twenty-odd years to prepare, the First Order was unprepared for the Morsians when they resumed hostilities. While the First Order made some initial gains against the Morsians, pushing into Morsian space, the Morsians responded rapidly and brutally, pushing back the First Order and quickly making progress into First Order space.

Morsian army command structure

The command structure of the Morsian army

Organization[]

The Morsian Empire solidified the legionary structure into what it would remain. The total legionary strength was 3,000 men with 500 Imperial Engineer and a further 500 specialist legionaries for weapons such as flamethrowers, heavy repeaters and the like.

  • Ten men form a section.
  • 100 men (ten sections) formed a cohort.
  • 500 men (five cohorts) formed a sixth of the legion.
  • 1000 men (ten cohorts) formed a third of the legion.
  • 3000 men (thirty cohorts) formed a full legion.

Ranking[]

  • A standard soldier was a Legionary.
  • 100 legionaries were commanded by a Centurion.
  • Five centurions, or 500 legionaries, were commanded by a Centurion Maximus.
  • Two centurion maxumus', or ten centurions/1,000 legionaries, were commanded by a Centurion Imperator Maxius.
  • In total command of the legion was the Legatus.
    • In command of all legion forces in a province was a Legatus Imperata Maximus.
    • In command of all legionary forces in a quarter of a planet's hemisphere was a Princeps Magnus.
    • In command of all legionary forces in half of a planet's hemisphere was a Ducis Invicta.
  • Overall command of every single Morsian legion was the Morsian Emperor.

Additional Legion Forces[]

Praetorians[]

Praetorians, also known far more infrequently as Veteran Legionaries, were a more elite legion of the Morsians. These were generally composed from legionaries and officers who had proved themselves outstanding in combat. While their equipment and armor didn't change, their ranking did, as each Praetorian rank was slightly higher than their legionary equivalent. Because of the requirement of proving themselves in a battle, there were far less praetorians and therefore less praetorian legions than regular legions, though this didn't mean that there weren't any standing praetorian legions in the Morsian Army.

  • A standard soldier was a Praetorian.
  • 100 praetorians were commanded by a Praetorian Maximus.
  • Five praetorian maximus', or 500 praetorians, were commanded by an Invicta Praetorian.
  • Two invicta praetorians, or ten praetorian maximus'/1000 praetorians were commanded by an Imperator Praetorian.
  • The full praetorian legion was commanded by a Legatus Imperator.

Auxiliaries[]

Auxiliary infantry were much the same as regular legionaries, however they differed in a couple of ways. Auxiliaries were generally stationed in border forts or border checkpoints, acting as a quick response troops for attacks or local defense forces where the situation wasn't dangerous enough for the rest of the army to be called. The structure and hierarchy of the auxiliaries didn't change, though the basic infantryman was just called an 'auxiliary' rather than 'legionary'. The only visual difference for the auxiliary soldier was their use of chainmail rather than segmented chest armor, but nothing else changed. Their shield also deployed in an oval rather than the legionary rectangle and some auxiliaries carried blaster rifles over carbines, but the rest of their equipment was the same.

Tanks[]

Any vehicles were classified by the Morsians as auxiliaries and so treated as such. Tanks were arranged into "turmae" of seventy-two armored vehicles which could be attached to the legion if and when needed for armor support. These tanks were capable of providing indirect fire support as well as tackling strongholds and other armored vehicles such as walkers. The main battle tank of the Morsians was the Aemulator main battle tank, which came in both tracked and repulsorlift forms.

Morsian Legionary Equipment

The standard equipment of a legionary at the end of the Clone Wars

Equipment[]

Soldiers of the imperial army were issued both melee and ranged equipment to ensure that they were well prepared for any situation. For melee combat, each legionary was equipped with a short stabbing Lightsaber and deployable personal rectangular energy shield called a scutum personalis. The lightsaber was crafted on Mors from the black metal found there. A green button activated the blade, there was a basic decoration at the blade end while a material wrap gave the lightsaber grip. The shield was a central boss which held the emitter and a rear handle to grip it. The handle could be adjusted in a 360 degree rotation and a button could deploy or retract the shield as needed.

For ranged combat, each legionary had a blaster carbine on a sling which could be slung to their back to be out of the way for melee combat. These blaster carbines were either the E-3 blaster, X-22 blaster rifle or CD-36 blaster rifle which were later superseded/added to with the E-11 blaster rifle and DC-15A blaster carbine. Specialist troops carried heavy weapons such as the DH-X heavy blaster rifle and later DLT-19 heavy blaster rifle. Other specialist weapons included flamethrowers and rocket launchers to allow the legion to engage many different targets. The legion was also equipped with several Morsian Beam Weapon teams which gave them good 'all round' attack against every type of target. Each legionary also had several Thermal detonators on them for throwing.

Morsian Centurion

A centurion in uniform

Uniform[]

Every legionary wore a black tunic along with a bowl like helmet which had cheek guards which hung down and strapped to the lower jaw as well as a semi-circular neck guard at the rear of the helmet. They then wore segmented combined chest and shoulder armor/guards, arm guards and leg guards along with hand gauntlets and foot armor. They also wore an equipment belt which carried things like their melee weapons, personal effects and five strips of leather with metal tips. These jangled together as the men moved, making an intimidating noise for the enemy to hear, to put fear in them before any actual fighting began. On the rear upper center of the chest armor, there were numerals to identify the legion which the legionary is from. The armor had green markings on it which were unique to each legion, such as the banner emblem on the front torso armor, over their heart, and the Morsian emblem on each shoulder guard. Officers of centurion rank and higher had a semi-circular plume on top of their helmet to not only denote their rank but also help identify them when in melee combat to Morsian troops. Officers of centurion maximum ranking and higher also had varying lengths of capes to denote their status.

Morsian legionary crouching pixel art

A legionary entering melee combat

Combat[]

The Morsian army relied on a combination of melee and ranged combat while in battle. Each legionary carried a blaster carbine, which was their primary weapon. When engaging in combat, legionaries would fire back at their enemies from cover where available. However, when cover wasn't available, legionaries would need to make their own. For melee combat, each legionary was equipped with a lightsaber and shield generator, and when instant cover from blaster fire was required, the shield could be used for this purpose. Legionaries had various formations they could adopt on command, and one such formation allowed them to present a chest high shield wall of energy shields, allowing them to fire back from relative safety.

When the fighting became too close quarters for blaster to be effectively used, or during urban combat, legionaries had their melee weapons on their belts to give them an edge in combat. Energy shields and short stabbing lightsabers afforded them great protection and offense in an area where most other armies of the galaxy lacked it. In addition to dedicated melee weapons, legionaries had various melee formations which gave them either greater offensive or defensive capabilities.

Motto and oath[]

Every recruit must swear an oath when they join the legions or any branch of the military. It varied slightly between each branch and, in the past, had varied greatly depending on the role, government and social status, but became more universal. The oath, due to its importance and antiquity, was said in Old Morsian, but could be translated into galactic basic for others to understand. In Old Morsian, the oath went:

“Et iurantes per senatu et apud populum et in se Imperatoris Vita.

Pugnabo adversus mortis gloria et virtute.

Dum spiro ac legionibus imperator machinam, Claustrum Illae Lacrimae Imperii et eius praevalebit.

Dum spiro, Imperatoris fuerit vivet et non pertimentes barbara tumultus et animam meam pono pro Imperatore.

Ego non dubito ordines a summo regente, Imperatore.

An legionarius non deserit, numquam recedit, et non reddat.”


When translated to Galactic Basic, the oath became:

“I swear allegiance to the populace and senate of Mors and her Emperor.

I will fight with honor and bravery in the face of death.

As long as the legions breathe and the Emperor reigns, Mors and her Empire will prevail.

As long as I breathe, the Emperor shall live unafraid of barbarian invasion and I shall lay down my life for the Emperor.

I will not question orders given by the supreme ruler, the Emperor.

A legionary never quits, never retreats and never surrenders.”

The last line of the oath, "An legionarius non deserit, numquam recedit, et non reddat," which was "A legionary never quits, never retreats and never surrenders," became the unofficial motto of the legions, where a legion and legionary never left the battlefield or fight until the job was done.

Legio 89

An example of a legion standard

Battle standard[]

Each legion had a battle standard that flew from a large pole and cross piece that could be seen by all combatants on the battlefield. The standard was important not only to identify the legion or legions in combat, but also as something for the legionaries and follow and rally around. It was realized fairly early into the army's formation that having some sort of emblem or standard to rally around greatly helped the morale of the soldiers and gave them something to follow and fight behind. Soon, the importance of having a standard was realized by everyone in the legions and having a standard be captured or destroyed is a great shame to the legion and its men. As such, legionaries will ferociously defend their standard until death, placing it of the upmost priority even at the expense of their own lives. The standard is one of the first things to be saved if a legion starts to fall back, to avoid its capture and bringing shame to its legion.

Morsian Standard Bearer pixel art

A signifer of the army

The soldier in charge of the standard was known as a signifer and they defended it, looked after it, and carried it where it was needed. It was a highly honored and respected job, and legionaries who were given the role of signifer took it very seriously. If something befell the standard, such as it being damaged, destroyed, or captured, then the blame would often fall on the signifer.

Transport[]

Blue Glass Arrow Main article: Morsian Personnel Carrier

The legions had their own transports in the form of an armored personnel carrier, the Morsian Personnel Carrier, or MPC. These carriers were tracked, armored boxes which could carry ten legionaries in them, plus the driver, commander and gunner at the front. Mid-engine with a forward pintle mount for a heavy repeating blaster, the vehicles could transport the legion more rapidly and a greater distance than marching could.

War Crime Charter[]

Blue Glass Arrow Main article: Morsian war crime charter

The Morsian war crime charter was a continuously evolving charter governing war crimes and legal warfare standards that the Morsian Army had to abide by. These rules governed things such as illegal or restricted weapons, the treatment of wounded, non-combatants, prisoners of war, punishments and various other rules that were designed to keep warfare to a humanitarian standard.

Behind the scenes[]

  • The Morsian Army is heavily based on the real-life Roman Army in some aspects, though many of the ranks and the army structure is deviated from the real Roman legions.

Gallery[]

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