o2ranger - "The Scion of Ember" - Simeon, "Ember's Rangers"

Ember's Rangers

Of the military forces, only the Rangers live on the island. They protect Ember Isle, the Castle and resident family members. They patrol volcano, forest, marsh and beach. Wherever they are needed on the Isle of Ember, they are prepared to go. Usually descended from previous generations that have served or are family members of the craftsmen, herders, castle staff and other royal retainers.

Recently, the Scion has requested a major increase in the number of recruits in training. No one seems to know why this command was issued, but Captain Simeon and his officers are complying. The rankings of the Rangers are:

Recruit:

Newbies. The only other job they possess, except to be trained, is to run messages between the more experienced, and higher ranking rangers. They are drilled consistently with weapons training. There are normally three training sessions for the recruits, which is performed by the corporals, but since the insurge of new recruits, it had to be increased to four, two for each group, and they had to pull the sergeants off of recruiting the guards, and have them help with the recruits. The other misfortune is that now, the group of recruits is too large to train in the Training Hall. It must be done out in the courtyard, where everyone can see how much work they have left to do before they even become presentable recruits.

Guard:

The next rank is the guard. These rangers are the mainstay of castle security. They are the recruits who have finally proven they can handle their weapons adequately, and keep themselves from getting killed too quickly. They are posted at the main castle gate, and at the armory, and make patrols through the castle in pairs usually, but in increased security, they patrol in groups of four. They are given further training in weapons, and also in horsemanship.

Corporals:

Corporals, the immediate supervisors of the guards, are integrated with the guard patrols and gate posts. They are the ones who have reached the end of the training for this group, and are given basic training in leadership and tactics, as well as having to perform the training for the recruits.

Scouts:

The scouts are the rangers who patrol the island's roads and keep the area clean and free of small bandit groups. They are out on patrol for six days, then spend twelve days back at the castle. While on patrol, they stay at designated waypoints, where small but adequate shelter is located. Scout groups consist of three scouts and their immediate supervisor, a sergeant. While at the Castle, scouts receive training in weapon skill, horsemanship, and survival. They may take training excursions with a Ranger. The sergeants receive further supervisory training, training in local law, and also must train the guards.

Rangers:

The actual rangers are the soldiers who travel, usually alone, or in pairs at the most, across the island. They are supposed to scout out the land, looking for signs of danger. They are interim judges, whose decisions only are in effect until the matter may be seen by the Scion. Their expedition schedules are never published, and never routine. While at the castle, they are drilled in weapon skill, survival, assassination techniques (in order to spot one, rarely to be used as a weapon) and court etiquette.

Sentinels:

The sentinels are the Scion's personal guards. They are in the castle while the Scion is there, and travel with him when he leaves. Their secondary job is training the rangers.

Captain:
Nominated by the Ranger officers, confirmed and appointed by the Scion of Ember, the Captain is responsible for organizing, recruiting, training, patrols, discipline, and defense strategies of the Rangers.

Training:

All rangers start out with basic weapons training (swords, maces, polearms, bows, crossbows). As they progress to scout, the attention is shifted to more personal, single-man weapons (swords, bows).

With the influx of recruits, the training schedule for all but the recruits has been post-poned. To get the recruits in feasible order, Group One trains from 6 to 8 in the morning, and 1 to 3 in the afternoon. Group Two trains 9 to 11 in the morning, and 4 to 6 in the evening. As soon as most know which end of the sword to hold, it may be toned down to resume guard and scout training.

One thing that has not been put off is the castle siege training. Drills are run when the Captain schedules them, to ensure the reaction of the guards, corporals, and the in-house scouts and rangers is in top shape, (especially for when visitors show up.) The guerilla tactic wargames have been put off, not wanting to spare the people for that, instead shifting them to training the recruits. The normal scouting and ranger patrols have not been toned down though. The ranger patrols have actually been increased, but only the Captain and a couple of his men know exactly what the increase is.

There are eight guards total at the front gate, four at the armory, and five patrols of two throughout the castle, with three total shifts of each. There are three differing shifts of sentinels with the Scion at all times, guarding his bedroom door, or throne room, or dining hall, wherever he may be. There are scouts out on the island at all times, patrolling the beaches and the roads at all times. The rangers travel the more uninhabited portions of the island, on horseback (the horses finely -trained by Geraint, the Stable Master), and scout out possible areas of insurgence, landing, and bandit hideouts. When one is found, it is usually dealt with by scouts, some rangers, and the Captain. In times of crisis, the rangers can all be brought onto a twelve-hour shift, and patrols inside and out of the castle increased.

Revised: January 16, 2001.
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Recruit:	Newbies. The only other job they possess, except to be trained, is to run messages between the more experienced, and higher ranking rangers. They are drilled consistently with weapons training. There are normally three training sessions for the recruits, which is performed by the corporals, but since the insurge of new recruits, it had to be increased to four, two for each group, and they had to pull the sergeants off of recruiting the guards, and have them help with the recruits. The other misfortune is that now, the group of recruits is too large to train in the Training Hall. It must be done out in the courtyard, where everyone can see how much work they have left to do before they even become presentable recruits.
Guard:	The next rank is the guard. These rangers are the mainstay of castle security. They are the recruits who have finally proven they can handle their weapons adequately, and keep themselves from getting killed too quickly. They are posted at the main castle gate, and at the armory, and make patrols through the castle in pairs usually, but in increased security, they patrol in groups of four. They are given further training in weapons, and also in horsemanship.
Corporals:	Corporals, the immediate supervisors of the guards, are integrated with the guard patrols and gate posts. They are the ones who have reached the end of the training for this group, and are given basic training in leadership and tactics, as well as having to perform the training for the recruits.
Scouts:	The scouts are the rangers who patrol the island's roads and keep the area clean and free of small bandit groups. They are out on patrol for six days, then spend twelve days back at the castle. While on patrol, they stay at designated waypoints, where small but adequate shelter is located. Scout groups consist of three scouts and their immediate supervisor, a sergeant. While at the Castle, scouts receive training in weapon skill, horsemanship, and survival. They may take training excursions with a Ranger. The sergeants receive further supervisory training, training in local law, and also must train the guards.
Rangers:	The actual rangers are the soldiers who travel, usually alone, or in pairs at the most, across the island. They are supposed to scout out the land, looking for signs of danger. They are interim judges, whose decisions only are in effect until the matter may be seen by the Scion. Their expedition schedules are never published, and never routine. While at the castle, they are drilled in weapon skill, survival, assassination techniques (in order to spot one, rarely to be used as a weapon) and court etiquette.
Sentinels:	The sentinels are the Scion's personal guards. They are in the castle while the Scion is there, and travel with him when he leaves. Their secondary job is training the rangers.
Captain:	Nominated by the Ranger officers, confirmed and appointed by the Scion of Ember, the Captain is responsible for organizing, recruiting, training, patrols, discipline, and defense strategies of the Rangers.