22nd Front Guard

The 22nd Front Guard, also called "The Bloody 22nd" is a Red Regiment of Galian Infantry-Guard presently deployed on the planet Sepulchre as part of the Galian Coreward Rebellion. The Bloody 22nd currently stands as the most heavily decorated regiment of soldiers in the Galian Armed Forces for its victories, and harrowing losses during the various Sepulchre Campaigns. The Regiment has earned the nickname "The Bloody 22nd" thanks in part to its history of heavy casualties. As an Infantry-Guard regiment, the 22nd serves as the backbone of the Infantry forces on the planet, serving in the most dangerous zones of battle, and participating in the bloodiest assaults on heavily fortified positions. Terms of service in the Bloody 22nd are artificially shortened to two-years rather than the standard five in other regiments thanks largely in part to this intense danger and stress. Infantry who have served their two years are typically rotated to a back line Regiment, such as the 28th, or a specialist regiment like the 30th.

The soldiers of the 22nd suffer the heaviest shelling, and chemical attacks of any of the Red Regiments, and experience an average daily casualty rate as high as 600 men per day. Largely because of this high casualty rate, the Bloody 22nd is designated as an expanded Regiment, and includes some 1,500,000 Soldiers, and is under the command of Knight-Major Cx. Anders Sabin.

Background
Historically attached to the Imperial Second Fleet, the 22nd Front Guard proudly carries a long history of service in the Empire. Among the oldest Regiments in the Imperial Military, the Front Guard can trace its lineage back to the Imperial Civil-War and the Galia-Avelania conflict. The 22nd was formed as a Guard-Infantry Regiment intended to capture and occupy territory for the Empire. During the outbreak of the Galian Coreward Rebellion the 22nd was assigned to capture the planet of The Sepulchre from rebel forces. Following the near total defeat of the 2nd fleet during the Battle Over the Sepulchre the 22nd along with its co-belligerents in the proto Ruby Corps were left stranded on the planet, where combat quickly devolved into violent trench warfare. Today members of the "Bloody" 22nd regularly deal with toxic gas attacks, deadly assaults and counter-offensives, a near constant barrage of artillery fire, and rarely even the use of tactical nukes, and man-made radiation fields.

Organization
The 22nd is part of the Ruby Corps. Its members are drafted from across the Empire, mostly consisting of Freemen, but rarely Villeins. The Commander of the 22nd is Knight-Major Cx. Anders Sabin. The 22nd represents a standing force of 1,500,000 men who are in turn divided into 25 Companies of 60,000. The 22nd follows the standard Galian Military hierarchy.

Equipment
Every member of the 22nd is provided with the following:

Primary Firearm (KI Siren, Oskar Executioner, Oskar Harbinger)

Koss Imperial KI-12 Mantis sidearm

Denton Heavy Industry Radio Uplink

Hela Resource Ventures Radio-Hardsuit

DHI Chemical-Radio Filtration Mask

Muzzle Mountable Saber

Set of Trenching Equipment (Folding Shovel, Hammer, Drill, Nails, Hatchet)

Canteen & Meal Set, Water purification tablets

Basic Medical Kit (Gauze, Antiseptic, Stitching needle, Thread, Radiation Tablets)

Binoculars

Signal Flares

Personal Items (Playing Cards, Cigarettes, Lighter)

Culture and Traditions
Members of the 22nd are famous for their cold, calculating nature, described by some as bordering on sociopathic or machine like. Life in the 22nd is harsh, as soldiers spend every waking moment in the Trenches, at least when they're not storming the breach. As such the people of the 22nd have developed a uniquely dark, and morose sense of humor which can be shocking even to other Red Regiments, especially those not from the Sepulchre. Despite this, the 22nd is famed for its gallantry, and it is far from uncommon for soldiers to sacrifice their own lives diving into no-man's land to rescue an injured comrade.

Unlike other Regiments, the 22nd have no songs of their own, and the trenches of the 22nd are described as eerily quiet when compared to other trenches. Thanks largely in part to their proximity to the front, the 22nd's trenches are particularly exposed to listening posts, and so members of the 22nd tend to avoid verbal communication as much as possible when topside, instead relying on an immensely complex language of signs and gestures to communicate vital information to one another.

Decorations
Sepulchre Cross

Imperial Citation, Gallantry

Imperial Citation, Merit

Navy Citation, Gallantry

Notable People
Cx. Anders Sabin, Knight-Major