The Crushing of the Masses

Department of HumanitiesPsychology/Sociology Section

For: Chief EngineerSubject: Heavy/special weaponry

The third branch of combat arms, heavy/special weapons, consists of three diverse groups of MOSes (Military Occupation Specialties) who specialize in mass casualties and destruction. Two are subtler than the other in how they work against an enemy force to the casual viewer. However, as is my task, I will spell them out below.

Artillery is used mainly for causing mass casualties. However, with such weapons as the catapult and trebuchet, some impressive structural damage can be caused. Most artillery units are composed of archers due to their rapid firing rate and the ease of which they can shift their firing. Heavy weaponry is normally reserved for use against strong defensive points where the casualty rate would be too high to assault. These heavy weapons are also used to defend key positions and to lay siege to fortifications in an attempt to cut down the structure and those it protects.

Sappers are a style of troop that specializes in demolitions. Sappers go in, find the structural weak points and degrade them enough for the structure to collapse after they've cleared out of the way. Since every structure is different, there's no telling if it'll collapse on time or not. Which means each sapper team prays to one Power or another that the structure doesn’t collapse on them. Of course, being Acheron, they seem to really go unanswered. What comes is what may for war.

The last of the group builds various things for the rest of the army. Engineers do little than build the things that every army needs. These items vary greatly in their use and looks. Some examples include: boats, defensive positions, bridges, siege weapons, and any other construction needed to support an army. The majority of the structures built by engineers are designed to speed an army along their way to defeating rivals. Engineers are also responsible for building the traps and pitfalls that can befall their rivals. Any booby traps or pitfalls you are likely to run into on a battlefield more than likely were placed there by engineers. There's no real end to what they can or cannot do. You have to see them at work to really understand what they do. They do things to speed along the army and also to weaken their foes.

If I could give concrete examples as to how these two groups work, I would do so. However, it's hard to describe something that must be seen for you to fully appreciate with your own eyes the magnitude at which these soldiers perform their jobs.

In my next letter, I shall talk about the supporting elements of an army.

Calix Arvandus, Shaper 2.