Imperial Armed Forces (Shenewa)

History of the Armed Forces
The Imperial Army and Navy were created out of the army of the state of when the First Emperor united all of Shenewa in 1813. However, the Imperial Armed Forces in their modern form trace their roots back to the war of Imperial Restoration, from 1943-1951. During this conflict, elements of the Imperial Armed Forces, principally newly raised units and the Imperial Guard, loyal to the Emperor fought elements of the Imperial Armed Forces loyal to the warlords. The Air Force was created in 1959.

Mission
The missions of the Imperial Armed Forces are outlined in the Shenewan national security strategy. They are


 * Ensuring the independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of the borders of the Empire of Shenewa.
 * Contribute to the security and stability of the Ingonian and trade within it.
 * Defence and protection of all Imperial subjects.

Personnel
Since 1967, the Imperial Armed Forces have been an entirely volunteer force. As of 2023, the Imperial Armed Forces has 517,000 active personnel, 375,000 in the army, 90,000 in the air force and 52,000 in the navy (of whom 18,000 are marines).

The average age of new recruits to the Shenewan Armed Forces is 22. Upon joining, each recruit is given a sign-up bonus of ¥673,200 (equivalent to $1,800) and signs a contract for 25 years, with the option to leave after 7 years of active and 5 years of reserve service in the army or after 10 years of active service in the Air Force or Navy. After they have left the Armed Forces, veterans are given an annual stipend of ¥112,200 (equivalent to $300). As of 2022, 2,028,000 people in Shenewa were eligible to claim the veteran's stipend.

Rank Structure
The Shenewan Army has three classes of personnel that recruits can enter as, Enlisted (E), Warrant Officers (WO) and Officers (O). It has an additional class of rank, Technical Officers, however, it is not possible to enter the Armed Forces as a TO. TOs are drawn from Enlisted ranks and fill specialist roles within the Armed Forces, as well as Quartermasters.

Warrant Officers fill the roles that other armies will usually use long-service NCOs for, Platoon Sergeant and Sergeants Major. Warrant Officers are selected by a board of examination which tests their physical and mental fitness for the role. Typically, warrant officers are drawn from individuals who have the ability but lack the necessary education and connections to join the armed forces as an officer.

Officer Training in Shenewa
In Shenewa, officers are graduates of one of the six military academies (of which three are army academies, one air force, one naval and one guards). In order to attend one of these academies, it is necessary to have been educated until 18 and to have the ability to pay the fees which pay for the non-military classes given at the academy. Once accepted into the academy, cadets will undergo a three year training course for the Army or Imperial Guard or a four year training course for the Navy or Air Force. Upon completion, they are commissioned into their chosen branch as an officer.

You can attend without the ability to pay these fees if you possess either a Military sponsorship or an Imperial sponsorship. The Military sponsorship is obtained by passing before a board, who decided whether or not the candidate is a good "investment". In practice, this type of sponsorship is only given out to relatives of serving officers or former officers. Imperial sponsorship is more difficult to obtain, being dependent on having passed a set of exams in the top third of those who sit it and being passed by an interview board. This practice began with the end of the War of Imperial Restoration in 1951, the goal being to ensure there was a sizeable proportion of the officer corps with reason to be grateful for their position to the Emperor personally. This was meant to ensure the officer corps did not grow to possess an institutional identity and esprit de corps separate from their role as soldiers of the Emperor, as they had done in the Warlord era. With the exception of the Imperial Guard, typically 1/5 of each class in the academies will be attending on an Imperial sponsorship.

Army
The Imperial Army (Keumoine: Te Enepē Teupia, "the Imperial Warband") is the of the Imperial Armed Forces.

Organisation
For administrative purposes, the Imperial Army is divided into a number of branches. In the field, the Shenewan Army is organised into 36 deployable brigades.

Navy
The Imperial Navy (Keumoine: Te Enepē Taua Noene, "the Imperial Sea Warriors") is the branch of the Imperial Armed Forces. Whilst the navy officially traces its lineage to 1813 and the first unification of Shenewa, in reality the navy in its modern form was created in the years after 1951, with the Imperial victory in the War of Imperial Restoration. During the warlord period (1908-1943), the navy had all but disappeared as an independent service and so needed building up again. To do so, the Shenewans hired many former officers of the Chezzetcook Marine Nationale to train its officers and men. Because of this, the traditions and organisation of the Imperial Navy and Marine Nationale have many similarities, although some traditions from before 1951 are retained.

The Shenewan Navy operates 6 submarines, 16 frigates, 36 corvettes, 10 minesweepers, 76 amphibious landing craft and 5 auxiliary ships. It also has a Fleet Air Arm that operates 72 aircraft and 48 helicopters and a Marine component consisting of two brigades and a number of supporting units.

Organisation
In addition to its ships, the Imperial Navy contains two marine brigades and a number of supporting units. Due to the the influence of the Marine Nationale on the Imperial Navy, the marines are known as fusiliers.

Air Force
The Imperial Air Force (Keumoine: Te Enepē Teuērenga, "the Imperial Sky Warriors") is the service branch of the Imperial Armed Forces. Whilst aircraft had been used by warlord armies, it was on a small scale and rarely more than a dozen. Consequently, when Shenewa was reunified in 1951, it had little in the way of an air force and less in terms of pilots used to flying as part of larger units. So, as it sought to build up its air force (initially the Army Air Corps), it hired former officers of the Imperial Zahavan Air Corps to help train its personnel and advise on doctrine. Because of this, the traditions and organisation of the Imperial Air Force and Imperial Zahavan Air Corps have many similarities.

Organisation
Like the Imperial Zahavan Air Corps, the Imperial Air Force identifies the branch personnel serve in with the colour of their collar tabs.

Special Missions Command
The Special Missions Command (Keumoine: Shekeheu Nāhene Notuheke) is the joint headquarters for all Shenewan across all three services. It was created in 2015. Among its subordinate units is the First Special Missions Unit (Keumoine: Wēnge Nāhene Notuheke Tueteha), often simply being called "the Tueteha" or Ta Tueteha in Keumoine (translating to the "the First"). The Tueteha are Shenewa's premier special forces unit, selected from among personnel who have served a minimum of 3 years within another Special Missions Command unit.

Budget
Whilst the Shenewan procurement budget is substantial, at 40% of the total budget, it has been estimated that between 10% and 15% of this amount (between $880m and $1.32bn) is used up through corruption. As with the other "Imperial" branches of the Shenewan government, the defence budget is decided on a 5 year basis, although this can be revised in exceptional circumstances.