Rank & Specialization Designation in the Cobalt Knights
The Cobalt Knights are the foreign relations corps of the Cobalt Protectorate, performing both military and diplomatic functions for the interstellar geopolitical organization. As an organization that observes a military chain of command, knowing the rank and area of specialization of a given Cobalt Knight is important for maintaining continuity of command and span of responsibility within an operation.
Appointment
The title of a given Cobalt Knight is derived from a combination of the rank one holds within one's branch and the branch one serves in, in that order. Rank is acquired through the combination of experience, specialized training, and seniority. Cobalt Knight ranks are divided into five levels, which are, in turn, subdivided into three (usually unspoken) Grades each. In order from lowest to highest, these are:
- Squire: Squires are the bottommost rank of Cobalt Knights and may include fresh recruits out of secondary school, military academy students, and other trainees with no advanced education beyond basic training. Squire is a probationary rank and has a finite duration; failing to advance out of Squire rank means that a recruit has been elimiated for consideration as a Cobalt Knight and should seek employment or service elsewhere. Because Squires are likely to change method of service once their aptitudes become known, the branch aspect of their title is often not referred to or is only used when above Grade III.
- Journeyman: Journeymen are Cobalt Knight enlistees who are out of Squire-level training but require field experience to promote. Any Cobalt Knight with a complete secondary education, such as a trade, academic degree, or other unique training, immediately jumps to the third grade of Journeyman and progresses to Knight as soon as proven worthy. Journeymen also serve as the men and women of the line in their military applications, from frontline soldiers to the general crew of spacecraft. Journeyman is typically forshortened to "Journey" for the purpose of titles, such as Journey-Seaman.
- Knight: Knights represent the bulk of professional Cobalt Knights and may remain in this position for as long as desired or as required by conditions (i.e. battlefield promotion). Knights may be trusted with low- to mid-level leadership roles, filling the equivalent of non-commissioned officers (Grade I-II) to low-level commissioned officers (Grade III) with regards other militaries found in the Sealed Kingdoms Region. An experienced Cobalt Knight might serve as a CIC officer on a small spacecraft (i.e. Knight-Airman Enzo Salt of the CKV Mercury Sable) or sea vessel, a department head on a large spacecraft, or a company leader. Though the Knight does not set the overall agenda, he or she is expected to see to it that the agenda is carried out.
- Elder Knight: Elder Knights are the equivalent of upper level officers and oversee the efforts of many Knights and lower-ranked personnel. Elder Knights candidates are drawn from the most experienced and accomplished Knights Grade III. An Elder Knight can command a large starship (i.e. Director Mokara Lain of the ESCI Revelation), multiple smaller starships, divisions of soldiers, and other similarly-sized operations. These individuals are trusted to operate independent of higher command structures in the service of the wider goals of the Cobalt Knights in a given theater, though they are beholden to the orders and overarching objectives of Master Knights. High-ranking Elder Knights may also serve in diplomatic missions under the purview of Master Knights. Appointment to the rank of Elder Knight requires approval by the local System Council or, in the Core region of the Protectorate, by the Grand Council of Evermorn.
- Master Knight: Master Knights are the generals and admirals of the Cobalt Knights, forwarding the foreign policy goals of the Cobalt Protectorate civilian leadership to which they are directly beholden. Master Knights are drawn exclusively from the ranks of Elder Knights who have demonstrated the right combination of exceptional judgement and adherence to the the text and spirit of the Code of Evermorn. Master Knights hold command over of fleets of starships, armies of soldiers, and whole diplomatic missions, with Class III Master Knights overseeing operations across entire star systems. Appointment to the rank of Master Knight requires approval by the local System Council or, in the Core region of the Protectorate, by the Grand Council of Evermorn.
- Air: Airmen are primarily concerned with aerospace operations. Both air and space assets are wrapped into the air branch because, while operating in these domains sometimes requires separate skills, there is significant overlap once domain-specific training is completed. Furthermore, as the Cobalt Protectorate increasingly expands beyond the bounds of the Evermorn-Armoa Binary System, the spaceborne aspect of their mission increases in relative scope. Airmen may be distinguished from Espatiers (see below) by their emphasis on vehicle and drone operations over personal combat. The most common sorts of non-human Airmen are Human-like artificial intelligences and augmented birds and insects.
- Spaceborne: Espatiers are primarily concerned with interpersonal combat and physical security when these have some nexus to spaceborne operations. Espatiers can be used to conduct boarding actions on ships, cyclers, and space stations, as well as being inserted from space into the gravity wells of planets, moons, and asteroids. Espatiers differ from airmen by their limited operation of vehicles and from infantry by their specialization in operating in environments with micro-gravity, limited atmosphere, or radiological hazards. HLAI are the most common non-humanoid Knight-Espatiers.
- Infantry: Infantrymen are primarily concerned with interpersonal combat and physical security that takes place entirely on a planetary surface. The Cobalt Knight infantry branch sees the most use on Evermorn itself, as the Cobalt Knight is not the sole geopolitical power even on its homeworld even if it is the most dominant, but it can also be found on planets in the periphery (i.e. Lepidos) where security against ground-based threats may be required. Infantrymen may fight on foot and operate powered armor or armored vehicles for this purpose. The majority of augmented canines in the service of the Cobalt Knights serve as Journey-Infantrymen
- Sea: Seamen operate naval assets on worlds with significant oceans or other similar environments. The Cobalt Knights sea branch is also heavily involved with meteorology, scouting, search and rescue, and launch and recovery efforts at sea. Because Evermorn is a cold world with extensive ocean cover, much of Evermornan culture and history has some junction with life at sea, including its formative conflicts after the return of Wurth Harkin and the others enslaved by the Iron Talon Mining Concern. Thus, while the role of Knight-Seamen has changed as a result of increased emphasis on space flight, their traditions wield a significant influence over the culture of the Cobalt Knights as a whole. Many augmented cetaceans have reached the rank of Knight-Seamen by dint of exceptional intelligence and teamwork ability, making them among the most high-ranked of non-humanoid Cobalt Knights.
- Specialist: Specialists are those Cobalt Knights who, through dint of specialized training (i.e. Knight-Specialist Astenos Fox) or unique assignment, don't fit neatly into one of the other branches or, alternatively, are capable of operating across multiple domains simultaneously. Specialists include medical personnel, engineers, life support biologists, electronic warfare specialists, and more. Knight-Specialists are the most common of all Cobalt Knights in non-combat roles, such as support for diplomatic missions, public relations efforts, training programs, and health programs. Knight-Specialists are most well-known face of the Cobalt Knights to the general public. Canine Journey-Specialists make excellent brand ambassadors for the organization.
Duties
Chain of command flows from the newest Squire to the most important Master Knight through position in MoS first, then overall rank, then rank within branch in that order. In keeping with the Evermornan love of modularity and multiple-redundancy, the command structure within a given mission is always arranged such that there are clear lines of command succession in the event of disaster. Taking out a Cobalt Knight commander might briefly interrupt an action for but a moment - just long enough for a successor, now filled with righteous zeal to bring the enemy to justice, to step in.
by BCGR_Wurth
Type
Civic, Military, Generic
Reports directly to
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