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While I am very impressed by the myriad of unique O.C.C.s their are to play in Splicers, there weren't any just general grunts. Their weren't any that captured that image of the underpaid man with crappy equipment given the task of destroying an enemy much greater than themselves and accomplishing the mission. Sure there is the Roughneck, but even they seemed like Special Forces type Heavy shock troops and not the light infantry feel akin to modern generic infantry. So here is my interpretation of that basic trained man that accomplishes the mission given to him with the limited resources at his disposal.

House Guardsman O.C.C.
The House Guardsman are the ordinary men and women who have sworn themselves to fight against the Machine. Where the Roughnecks and other Splicers are the hard hitting shocktroopers and bring specialized capabilities to the war effort, House Guardsmen are the infantry foot soldiers, the standing armies sent to defend and patrol the borders of a House's territory, occupy Forward Operating Bases, and reinforce and aid in the war effort however their command sees fit.
House Guardsman go through a rigorous boot camp and basic infantry training course where they are drilled with battle tactics, weapons training, basic land navigation courses, basic hand to hand combat skills, as well as learn about the Machine and enemies that they might face in the ongoing war. The training is rigorous developing their bodies and minds for what they may face. They learn to take orders, as well as lead and give them through small unit leadership development. Once training is complete they are green, fresh and ready Guardsman as capable as any to face those machine horrors that seek to eradicate mankind.
Many Guardsman start out as the lowly private on the battlefield, only to make a quick and decisive effort against the Machine and come out on top, earning battle merits and working their ways up the chain of command. Some experienced Guardsman even move on to become Splicers, Dreadguard, Archangels, anything is open to them, having already proven themselves in battle against the machines. Although few do this due to the fact that a Guardsman does not usually live to see the day that they can progress with their training that far.

Alignment: Any, but generally Scrupulous (30%), Unprincipled (25%), and Anarchist (20%)
Attribute Requirements: P.S. 11, P.E. 12, Spd 10, a high P.S. and P.E. are suggested.
O.C.C. Bonuses: + 1 initiative, + 1 strike, + 2 save vs. Horror Factor.
Base S.D.C.: 25 plus any from Physical skills.
Common Skills: Standard
O.C.C. Skill Programs: Athletics(+10%), Basic Military (+10%), Infantryman (+10%), and one Skill Program of choice (except for Host Pilot, Medical Doctor, War Mount Rider, or Wingman)
Elective Skills: Select three Military or Physical skills at level one, plus three from the following list. Plus select one additional skill at levels 3, 6, 9, and 12. All new skills start at level one proficiency.

Communications: Any (+5%)
Domestic: Any (+5%)
Espionage: Wilderness Survival only
Medical: First Aid only (+10%)
Military: Any (+10%)
Physical: Any
Rogue: Prowl and Gambling only
Science: Advanced Mathematics or Astronomy and Navigation only
Technical: Any (+5%)
Transportation: Horsemanship, Horsemanship: Racing, or Seasmanship only (+10%)
W.P.s: Any

Secondary Skills: The character gets four secondary skills at level one, plus an additional skill at levels 2, 4, 6, 8, and 12.
M.D.C. "Living" Body Armor: Every Guardsman is issued a suit of "Living" Body Armor with 4D10 Bio-E of enhancements, but is limited to the categories of Eyes & Vision, Other Sensory Features, Biological Defenses, Offensive Bio-Weapons, Ranged Bio-Weapons, and Ranged Weapon Upgrades.
Note: House Guardsman are usually not given the best of the best, whatever armor was readily available is what is given to them, with specific equipment depending on duties of the individual guardsman. Limited to light or medium Body Armors only, with Heavy given on a special basis only.

Standard Equipment: Several sets of combat fatigues, a couple sets of dress clothing, survival knife, utility belt, first-aid kit, Face Wrap (gas mask), tinted goggles, and one Bio-Organic Rifle with enough ammunition for heavy combat, a tent, knapsack, backpack, two water skins, 1 week of emergency food rations, and some personal items.

Money: Has 3D6 x 10 credits in trade items, as well as 2D6 x 10 in available credits. Each Guardsman is given a barracks room, a small 20 x 20 x 20 room with 2 other roommates, free food and rations, and basic necessities to live.

The Upside: A Guardsman is the every day Joe that has decided enough is enough and to make a stand against the Machine. They believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that they are fighting a cause worth fighting for and that they can make a difference. They are trained, disciplined, capable of leading their fellow Guardsman to the doors of death and smile as it greets them knowing that they went out fighting, giving the Machine the finger as they go down.

The Downside: Guardsman have it rough. Rougher than any others trying to fight this fight. They don't get all the special Host Armors and Bio-weapons of the Splicers. They are given a rifle that comes to become their specialized killing weapon, and cherish more than anything because they simply can't lose it. They are the underfunded, unappreciated, unnoticed fighters that never see the credit they deserve for the difference they've made.


Any comments or criticisms are welcome!

Well done. I completely agree that the Roughnecks still portray an elite soldier as they have access to host armor. How do you envision House Guard infantry being organized? Are there there any support weapons organic (no pun intended) to the squad level, fire team level? What are specialized roles and weapons within a house guard infantry formations? Designated marksmen, machine gunners, mortarmen, anti-tank assaultmen, etc.

Well, my inspiration for them would come from how standard Marine Corps infantry are used today. They would be broken down from Divisions to Regiments to Battalion to Companies, and from there into the standard 3, 39 man platoons, broken into 3 squads of 13 men, in addition to a specialized weapons platoon that houses mortarmen, machine gunners, and assaultman.

The size of each House's forces would vary with the size of the House. The Great House of the Barren Marsh is the largest of any Houses at 250,000 men strong, 30% of which are Non-Combatants, families, elderly, children, and what not. Even with that the forces of Barren Marsh are still larger than the modern post war Marine Corps. That being said it isn't hard to think that they would be organized in such a manner.

Starting at the fireteam level, there would be the teamleader, the automatic gunner, the assistant gunner, and the rifleman. Standard issue for the rifleman and assistant gunner would be the Light Cell Laser Rifle. It's unlimited payload and far range give more versatility and allow for massing of fires without having to worry about ammunition. The team leader would have a Pod Rifle, giving explosive capabilities to the fire team. And the automatic gunner would most likely have the Shard Rifle, giving it's automatic capabilities and the ability to quickly feed it more ammo. Each 3 teams would be broken down like this, with the Squad Leader forming the last of the 13 men in a squad, who probably also is given the Light Cell Laser Rifle as I see it as more of the standard issue type rifle for the Guardsman.

Then of course there would be the weapons platoon of the heavy machinegunners, mortarmen, and assaultman. Each making up their own 13 man squad in the platoon. Assaultman are broken down into 13 man teams, consisting of the team leader, 2 gunners, and two assistant gunners. Anti-tank assaultman would use the Bio-rocket slinger, with the assistant gunner helping by giving suppressing fire with his own Light Cell Laser Rifle, and the Team leader giving commands to the buddy teams.

As for the Mortar Men their aren't any indirect fire weapons in the actual book, but I have made my own Seed Pod Mortar system that they would use. It's capable of being fired by a single man, eliminating the need for the standard 3 man Mortar teams of today's standards. So using this system, I would still break it down into 3 teams of 4 men, with the Mortar section leader as the head of all the teams. Each team would consist of a 2 gunners, and 2 assistant gunners, the gunner using the Seed Pod Mortar system and the assistant gunner helping to carry the weight and help with suppressive fires. j

Unfortunately there aren't any heavy machineguns in the actual book either. These could be exchanged for a Burner squad, like the WW2 days of old. Lugging around the Burner, or my own creation of the Firefly Rifle, which I posted in a different post. They could all be broken down the same, with gunners and assistant gunners.

This is all just what came to me. I'm sure it could be done better but from my own experience it's what makes the most sense as to how they would break down the Guardsman. Smaller houses of course would be undermanned and wouldn't have access to all the weapon systems. Maybe in those houses they worry more about small tactical strike teams instead of basic infantry, who knows. I just thought this would fit the flavor more than the Roughnecks.


If anyone is interested in the rules for the Seed Pod Mortar system I'll post them up as well.

Hell yes we are interested. Well I am anyway. Platoon HQ element would consist of Plt Commander, Plt Sgt and a Medic (corpsman).

I would adapt a vehicle mounted seed cannon or similar weapon in the role of HMG. I would integrate man portable air defense systems into the weapons platoon.

I to am interested, by all means please keep working on it.

I'm glad everyone likes the Guardsman! Thanks for the feedback. Anyway here is what I have for a Mortar System. I tried to keep to the difficulty of getting an indirect fire weapon on target, while keeping with a good usable role in game. To me it seems the Splicers have very little long range weapons to contend with the Machine, and here is my take on one possible weapon system that might be used.


Seed Mortar Pod System
A hand held mortar system capable of providing indirect fire support assets to the grunts on the front line in a relatively
portable manner that doesn't require larger bio-organisms. The weapon system launches seed pods that explode upon contact
with the ground, bursting into a large bio-plasmic explosion. These mortar systems are one of the few long range
weapons that the resistance has to rival that of the Machine, and the system is able to drop rounds quickly and accurately
on the ground. The mortar tube is an organism in of itself, with another organism that holds the ammunition for the system.
This comes in a backpack form that attaches onto the back of any bio-organic armor for easy carrying. It provides ammo to
the mortar Pod like a magazine does for a rifle. The Mortar Pod can be operated by one user effectively, but is slow to
carry as it is awkward to lug around in confined spaces. The weight generally isn't a problem for the augmented strength
of bio-armored Splicers. When carrying it into combat the user will rush with the weapon system on their shoulders, holding to cover until a good concealed and covered mortar position can be found. From here the tube is placed on the ground and the ammo organism attached. The tube will actually grow tendrils that reach and burrow into the ground securing it. This must be done before firing and generally only takes a few seconds (one melee action). Once this is done the system is ready to be fired.
The system is aimed through the use of an optic organism, and communications through the spotter with a spotting organism.

A forward scout observer, with the spotting organism, a small fleshy eyeball with tentacles that leach out and latch onto the side
of bio-armor, is used in helping aim the weapon system. Using this and Bio-Comms allows for pin point aiming of the mortar
rounds requiring a 9 to strike. Without a forward observer and just Bio-Comms it requires a 12 to strike to hit the target with no bonuses.Spotting organisms are usually assigned to platoon commanders or a platoon Sgt at the platoon level,
but are usable by anyone capable of calling for fire and can be used all the way down to the team level if mission dictates.

This long range firepower can be set up in support of an attack, as well as cover the retreat of forces during raid style
missions. From a player characters point of view, as the forward observer, they would have to radio in that they need
mortar rounds on a target (takes a single melee action). After this it will take 1D8 melee actions for the effects to be seen on target. Game Masters will roll to strike with the mortar rounds, and tell player characters whether it is a hit, or a miss. The characters will see the effects on target and will have to make corrections if the mortar team misses (takes only a few seconds, one melee attack).
Once a round hits the target all mortar rounds fired afterward have + 3 strike.

Weight: Of the tube, 22.5 lbs., The ammunition organism, 32 lbs.
Length: Tube 5.5 feet from base to tip. Ammunition organism is 3.2 feet, the size of a large backpack.
Mega-Damage: 2D6 x 10 + 20 per round dropped to a 50'x50'x50' area.
Minimum Range: 500 feet
Max Effective Range: 13,000 feet
Rate of Fire: Can be fired in Volleys of 1 or 2, the ammunition organism is slow to feed the seed pod to the tube and thus limits the number of rounds that can be fired with a single melee action.
Payload: 20 seed pods in the ammunition organism. These rounds cannot be regrown by the organism.
Trade Value: Limited Availability, most are not trained in the use of the mortar system. 45,000 credits

Shard Cannon
Shard Cannons are heavy machine gun style cannons, firing bursts of large sharpened bone that penetrates even the toughest of
mega-damage armors. The cannon is too large to be held by a normal human, and is usually mounted on war mounts or in other
turreted positions. Some of the larger Biotics and other beings of incredible strength have been known to lug one around the
battlefield, but it is very rare, as general tactics of the Human Resistance require speed and maneuverability against the machine. Unlike other bio-weapons, the Shard Cannon is able to be fed actual bone, producing more ammunition. The Shard Cannon itself propels the bone at incredible speeds and distance compared to the rifle and pistol versions of the weapon, and sends a gives off a squeal as the bone shards are propelled out of the weapon. This squeal is a fearsome indicator of the weapon and tends to frighten those who it's used against (Horror Factor 11). The mechanized robots under N.E.X.U.S. control do not feel fear, but they certainly feel the effects of a large spear of bone impaling into their metal dermis.

Limitations: Usually mounted, trying to lug this weapon around requires an augmented Splicer P.S. of 30. Those with a supernatural PS of 25 can carry the weapon without penalty. Those who try to use the weapon without a strong enough P.S. see themselves face a -80% to their Spd, and fatigue 3 times faster than normal.

Weight: 120 lbs, fully fed. Ammo boxes of bone shard are 15 pounds each.
Length: 6 feet long
Mega-Damage: 2D8x10 per burst of 10 rounds
Max Effective Range: 2000 feet
Rate of Fire: Each bursts is one melee action.
Payload: Automatically makes 15 bursts per hour. Feeding the weapon another 15 pounds of bone refills the weapon with
another 30 short bursts.
Trade Value: 60,000 credits, boxes of bone shards are 5,000 credits each.

Illustration of a House Guardsman by Stefano Marinetti http://stefanomarinetti.deviantart.com/

http://imgur.com/kb3AdN7

Here is the Splicers Militia that Slappy wrote in 2004.

viewtopic.php?t=32466

Nice!

Here is the latest concept sketch w/ some grenades, gear and pouches: http://i.imgur.com/j5jTE9X.jpg

Here is the camo color scheme I am going for: Atacs AU camoflauge pattern: http://www.popularairsoft.com/files/ima ... iew_02.jpg

I hope we see this in print.

Wooly wrote:Here is the latest concept sketch w/ some grenades, gear and pouches: http://i.imgur.com/j5jTE9X.jpg

Here is the camo color scheme I am going for: Atacs AU camoflauge pattern: http://www.popularairsoft.com/files/ima ... iew_02.jpg

Wow! That looks amazing! I love it. It definitely captures everything I was going for when I thought of the character. I'm really honored someone would take the time to actually create such great artwork for the class! Thank you so much.

BookWyrm wrote:I hope we see this in print.

As far as seeing it in print goes I would love to work on more stuff, hopefully get a Rifter submission in or something. I've never really done anything like that, as I had just made the class and wanted to share it here on the forums, but I would love to write more and actually get the class printed. It would really be a huge honor for me. I love the Splicers setting and have a ton of ideas.

Final color art of the House Guardsman OCC I commissioned from the very talented Stefano Marinetti http://stefanomarinetti.deviantart.com/

http://imgur.com/t4IaYTw

The illustration depicts Squad Leader Sergeant Johann Connor of Great House of Barren Marsh's 2nd Plt, A Co. 1st Bn. 177th Inf Regt. "The Longbowmen".

Sgt. Connor is equipped as a standard Guardsman and armed with a Light Cell Laser Rifle w/ an integrated, retractable bayonet and squig hand grenades. His fully environmentally sealed, model A-31 Living Armor is painted tan for urban and arid environments. Note the white bio-luminescent markings on the helmet, thighs and outside arms. These glowing identification markings can be activated by the operator and are used to prevent friendly fire, particularly during times of limited visibility.

The 177th Infantry Regiment's lineage can be traced back to the darkest days of the resistance when the scourge of the nano-plague had all but rendered conventional missile weapons useless. In a desperate holding action, in the vicinity of Hill 14, in the face of overwhelming NEXUS forced lead the Guardsmen of the 177th to improvise bow launched explosives. With this archaic technology they held the line long enough for vulnerable civilians to be evacuated despite taking heavy causalities. In honor of the battle of Hill 14 the Regimental insignia depicts a long bowman passant, in medieval clothing drawing a longbow on a blue field.

A play on the old Strongbow Cider logo would also be appropriate inspiration for the 177th Infantry Regiment's unit logo even if Strongbow is rather lousy cider.

http://i.imgur.com/SAjMawK.jpg