The Rich Five aka The Kentucky Free State

[dragoon500ly]

Ah, the KFS...they seem to be everyone's favorite villain in TMP! According to TM 1-1; the Rich Five are located in the area covered by: Vermont, New York, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky, South Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, and Alabama. Their tech level is described as "Atomic Age (circa 1980+) unlimited power, fusion and laser technology and population. Some weapons equivalency to TMP. Limited only be available materials and population." It is also mentioned "Power/Resources: Equal to TMP but not as widespread. Special Attributes: Highly developed empire far outnumbering TMP's personnel." And finally, "The Rich Five are the survivors of a group of five industrialists who had been frozen before the war along with portions of their empires. They have gathered a following and are building a city in the Kentucky highlands. They are a slave culture and are easily insulted."

Well now...

Bullets & Bluegrass and Fall Back! both mention this group under the name of The Kentucky Free State, reading both modules leaves the impression of a medium-sized group inhabiting the state of Kentucky and only recently expanding out of their borders. They are capable of rebuilding WWII-era aircraft as well as crude copies of M-60/M-1 tanks and M-2 IFVs.

But TM 1-1 hints at a much larger, better organized group covers the area claimed by the KFS. Hmmmmm...

Being accused of being an evil PD, , I prefer that my players have at least one major threat to their rebuilding efforts, typically I choose either the Warriors of Krell or my own, twisted version of the KFS. Herein, the KFS is a much larger power, covering all or major portions of 4-7 states with a much larger population base, a major industrial complex and a larger security force willing to engage and pursue MP Teams. For an added twist, I pirated portions of New America (from T2K), added a dash of extreme survivalists, a pinch of utter ruthlessness and baked for 150 years before serving to my players.

[mikeo80]

Originally Posted by dragoon500ly

Being accused of being an evil PD, , I prefer that my players have at least one major threat to their rebuilding efforts, typically I choose either the Warriors of Krell or my own, twisted version of the KFS. Herein, the KFS is a much larger power, covering all or major portions of 4-7 states with a much larger population base, a major industrial complex and a larger security force willing to engage and pursue MP Teams. For an added twist, I pirated portions of New America (from T2K), added a dash of extreme survivalists, a pinch of utter ruthlessness and baked for 150 years before serving to my players.

I LIKE IT!!!

And here is my little twist on KFS....

1) Let us imagine that the KFS military was actually run somewhat realistically. NOT as good as 1st Cav in Lonestar, but better than the disorganized mess that is portrayed.

2) Let us further imagine that KFS had expanded southwest towards Texas. They were after the remaining oil and refining industry of Texas.

3) Another little twist in time...1st Cav is NOT there.....Smashed by the invasion from Mexico

4) But the survivalists are still in business......Now they have not only some T-72's...They have REAL M1's...Possibly even a few M1A1's!!!

5) And guess what lies between the two.... Yep, PB2 and your team of heroes....

6) Oh, btw, you team JUST found PB2...no one is awake yet...You have about, oh....two, maybe three days....MAX...

Enjoy the carnage!!!!!!



My $0.02

Mike

[ArmySGT.]

Meh the KFS should be a challenge.

Or just kill them when the tube opens.....


why game it at all?

[dragoon500ly]

Here is my on twisted view of the KFS..comments and suggestions are welcome as this is a work in progress. This is based on a variety of sources that I've pooled together to make a better back story.

The Kentucky Free State has its roots in the right-wing, militant organizations which proliferated throughout North America during the 1970s and 1980s. The Free State Movement was an unusual coalition of survivalists, neo-Nazis and ultra-right wing militant religious organizations. The FSM was convinced that it was "their sacred duty before God" to create a society that "would rise from the ashes of a destroyed United States and rebuild a new nation based on traditional American values and principles." But these traditional values and principles would reflect the twisted social and political philosophies of the Free State Movement's founders.

From its inception, the FSM was protected by an almost impenetrable layer of secrecy. It maintained a careful cover as a conservative, respectable political action committee; this low-key, outwardly respectable cover allowed the FSM to avoid the fate of similar organizations such as the Posse Comitatus and the Covenant, Sword and Arm of the Lord, each of which were broken up in various government crackdowns.

Rather than resort to public pronouncements or holding public recruiting drives, the FSM was kept small. Prospective recruits were carefully screened and investigated before being approached. Highly intelligent individuals were preferred, particularly those with industrial, law enforcement, survivalist, military and other essential skills. But the single most important criteria was complete loyalty to the FSM. As the years passed, the Movement membership grew steadily larger and assets were acquired which allowed the necessary preparations for the coming Armageddon: the secret stockpiling of foodstuffs, petroleum products, vehicles, tools, spare parts, medical supplies and weapons and ammunition as well as other critical supplies in secret locations centered around the FSM's headquarters at Mount Sterling, Kentucky.

By the end of the 1980s, the Movement had a membership of over 750,000, scattered across the nation, with the largest concentrations (over 600,000) in the states of Kentucky, West Virginia, Tennessee and Ohio. Throughout these states, the Movement carefully acquired locations to secure their envisioned border. Rich and influential members would use the cover of their various businesses to target small towns for acquisition. They would buy out the town's key industries, forcing mass lay-offs and forcing the local citizen's to seek work in other areas. Other FSM front companies would move in, buying real estate and small businesses and establishing total control of the town's economy, law enforcement and government. Within a year or two, the entire town would be a Free State enclave.

Each enclave was designed to be independent. Each contained stockpiles of critical supplies, usually carefully stored in underground bunkers.

The leaders of each enclave also maintained secret copies of detailed instructions that were to be placed into operation once the fall of civilization began. Various portions of these secret files were concerned with what actions were to be taken in the event of a massive nuclear exchange; a limited exchange involving only a few cities; a minor exchange targeting military bases; a massive revolution; a military coup; a terrorist biological attack; total crop failures; wide spread epidemics and even invasion from outer space.

No matter what happened, the enclave leaders were to undertake no actions beyond that of insuring the survival of their enclave. The final form of their plan would be decided by the FSM leadership.

[mikeo80]

This is a great start to the story of the KFS. I can not wiat to see how you bring in the five families, freeze tech, fusion, and other parts of the KFS story.

Keep up the good work.

My $0.02

Mike

[dragoon500ly]

The Free State Movement borrowed heavily from the structures of existing secret societies to organize their system. The cell, or enclave, concept was taken from various revolutionary groups, although FSM "cells" would often contain hundreds and even thousands of members rather than just a few. THe locations and leaders of all the cells were known to only a handful of senior FSM leaders, the individual enclave leaders did not know of the location of any other enclaves.

Members were ranked according to numerical levels used in Masonic socities. New members are 1st Tier and serve as low-level works and soldiers. Promotion is automatic (as well as based on merit) up through the 12th Tier.

Next are the ranks corresponding to the middle-level management and they run from the 13th through the 30th Tier. These are responsible for day-to-day operations and planning, security, recruitment and procurement. Advancement comes again, through a combination of merit and time in service.

Above the 30th Tier, promotion is won through political maneuvering and occasionally, as a reward for exceptional service. These are the Executive ranks of the Free State and the are responsible for the long-term planning and governing of the Free State. The Committee of Five are the supreme rulers of the KFS and are believed to be the only 40th Tier Executives and their positions are strictly hereditary.

In addition to the Committee of Five, various Committees of Public Safety are organized at the county, city/town/village level; these control a bureaucracy which includes various subcommittees controlling domestic duties such as treasury, supply, population control, resource recovery, social reeducation, medical, employment, education and housing.

NOTE, much of this material is based on Twilight 2000's New America society.

[dragoon500ly]

Realizing the negative impact of having a Secret Police, the KFS instead calls this the Social Security Service. The SSS is responsible for the enforcement of Free State law as well as supervising the rehabilitation or punishment of any offenders. It is comprised of three major components.

The First Directorate consists of five divisions: The Special Surveillance Unit is responsible for domestic surveillance of the KFS population. This is accomplished through the use of block wardens and undercover agents as well as monitoring of telephone and radio communications and the use of security cameras set up in all public areas. The Threat Analysis and Assessment Unit is responsible for the analysis of all incoming data as well as providing the Committee of Five with estimates on potential actions. The Retention and Holding Unit is responsible for the kidnapping and imprisonment of dissidents until their trials. The Interrogation Unit is responsible for the forcible extraction of information from dissidents. The Special Means Unit is responsible for assassinations of, and assaults on dissidents, it also controls the Provocateur Squads. These elite operatives dress in the distinctive uniforms (or lack of them) of the Free State's enemies, potential enemies, and unsuspecting soon-to-be enemies and performs acts of terrorism against Free State citizens. This gives the propagandists their teeth and makes the most repressive police regulation tolerable, and even demanded by the general population. It is this pack of thugs that keep the Free State recruiting stations filled with willing volunteers.

The Provocateur Squads deliberately stir up the carefully cultivated hatreds within the civilian populations by a fiendishly and carefully planned program of revolting atrocities carefully calculated to keep the citizen's wraith firmly focused upon the enemy without and ignorant of the puppet masters from within who pull the strings of the Free State. They conduct brutal murders, rape and socially wrenching sabotage and then use these acts as cover for the elimination of the Free State's enemies.

The Second Directorate is responsible for the psychological manipulation of the population of the KFS. It includes such units as the Media Control Unit (radio, TV, movies, library and print media). The Youth Organization Unit (Boy and Girl Scouts and the Social Security Service Youth Athletic League). The Religious Advisory Board and the Social Services Bureau (handling of pensions, social assistance and food stamps). This Directorate is truly a masterpiece of the propagandist's art. It allows the Free State to play upon the susceptibilities, fears, aspirations and hidden hopes of the population and to guide them along the path chosen by the Committee of Five.

The Third Directorate is responsible for the maintenance of public order within the Free State and it has all the traditional trappings of a police force, a fire department and an ambulance service. This is the most visible component of the SSS and the manipulators of the Second Directorate spare no effort in reminding the population of the courage, dedication and sacrifice of the Third's Directorate's Public Security Officers, they are considered to be "everyday heroes who willingly sacrifice themselves for their fellow citizens."

Surprisingly, the SSS recruits from every walk of life and is the only Free State organization where minorities may rise to the highest levels. The only criterion for the SSS is total loyalty to the regime.

NOTE: this material is based on Twilight 2000's New America....what can I say, they make wonderful villains...no matter the game!

[dragoon500ly]

While the SSS serves the function of a Federal/State Police, the courts of the Free State appoints a sheriff per county who, in turn, appoints as many deputies as he believes he needs. The Sheriff is responsible for the enforcement of the laws of the Free States as he sees fit, subject to review by the Judge who appointed him. In the normal course of things, a Sheriff can only be removed from office by the Judge who appointed him.

If this seems like a formula tailor made for corruption, that's because it is. Sheriffs and deputies are expected to be corrupt, as are judges. Such offices are routinely bought and sold. The extent of such things is expected to be kept within reasonable limits, but Sheriffs and Judges always retire with a comfortable nest egg, and as long as order is kept, the Committee of Five does't care how order is kept. The only compensation in this system is that it has eliminated long prison terms. The concept of justice in the Free State is not so much ignored, as assaulted.

The various Committee of Public Safety governing the cities/towns/villages of the Free State use a similar system in selecting their Chiefs of Police. These local police departments have jurisdiction only within the limits of their towns, otherwise the Sheriff has authority.

Gun control in the Free state is a very serious matter. Licenses are required in order to own any weapon. Only the wealthiest of Citizens can afford brass cartridge firearms, although it is taken as a matter of course that any Executive can own and carry any weapon he or she pleases. At one time, the Free State even attempted to ban even black powder weapons, but cross-border raiders were then able to attack with impunity, destroying entire villages before Social Security Forces could arrive. So much damage was done that black powder weapons were made legal for Seconds and Thirds to own. Indeed, so survive is the problem today, that anyone living within forty miles of the borders are required to own at least one black powder rifle.

[dragoon500ly]

The Social Security Forces-Land

The Social Security Forces are the basic combat formations of the Free State. They form a well trained combined arms force equipped with some of the best equipment available today. The SSF was assembled after the war from Free State Security, fragments of U.S. Army and National Guard units, company security and local police and sheriff SWAT teams. Over the years, this polygot force has become a ruthless, battle-hardened and extremely capable organization. When not engaged in pushing the frontiers back, the SSF is kepy busy suppressing border raiders and river pirates, crushing the occasional Elsie revolt as well as conducting most of the major engineering projects within the Free State.

The Social Security Forces maintain high standards and more volunteers are turned away than are accepted. The minimum enlistment age is sixteen. There is no draft. Accepted recruits are sent to Camp Hunter (near Danville, Kentucky) for their basic training. During basic, the recruits receive many surprises. No matter how tough they are, no one "walks" through the training. They are taught to march and to shoot. To survive under the harshest of conditions. They are taught to act, think and fight as a team. Recruits spend four months in basic and sleep soundly every night.

After basic, the new soldier is sent to one of the SSF Regimental Headquarters. Here, they are issued their weapons and additional equipment (basic uniforms and gear are issued at Camp Hunter) and he is assigned to his battalion, company, platoon, where the finishing touches are placed on his training.

Each regimental headquarters maintains a barracks, workshops and other administrative paraphernalia. The various battalions rotate through this area for rest and reorganization when they are not based further forward on the line. In any battalion on the line, half of its companies are out on patrol at any time; such patrols live in the field and are frequently involved in border skirmishes.

Recruits earn eight credits a month; privates earn thirteen credits; corporals twenty-two; sergeants forty; section sergeants fifty-five; platoon sergeants seventy-five, first sergeants one hundred and sergeant majors one hundred and sixty. Lieutenants get eighty; captains one hundred and forty-five; majors two hundred and fifty; lieutenant colonels three hundred and twenty; colonels four hundred; brigadier generals five hundred and major generals six hundred. Nobody gets rich on SSF pay, but overall, it's not bad. The SSF provides all of the soldier's basic needs. Thirteen credits a month is enough to keep a soldier in beer, tobacco and other minor luxuries. The average civilian laborer sees forty-five credits a month in pay. With his day-to-day needs of food, clothing, shelter and medical needs covered by the SSF, this makes the lowly private fairly well off by the living standards of the Free State. This is a very powerful recruiting inducement and is one reason why the SSF can pick and chose its recruits carefully.

Uniforms are olive drab and patterened on the Vietnam-era jungle utilities. Rank is sown on both sleeves using standard U.S. Army rank (circa 1955). Officer rank tabs are worn on the collars. Each soldier is issued four cotton summer uniforms, three wool winter uniforms, two field jackets, load-bearing equipment, entrenching tool, messkit, bayonet, poncho, three wool blankets, two pairs of combat boots, one campaign hat and one steel helmet (U.S. Army M-1).

The Free State can manufacture both resistweave and kevlar, but the cost is too great for them to issue it to common soldiers. Officers and senior NCOs often purchase resistweave uniforms and kevlar vests and thigh pads. The vests made by the Free State are slightly inferior to modern kevlar. Often, an officer's family will purchase his set of body armor as a commissioning gift.

Recruits enlist for a period of six years of active duty, followed by twelve years in the reserve. After two years of service, the soldier becomes eligible for advanced training. This is conducted either at the regimental headquarters or at the university. Advanced training provides the SSF with its radio operators, armor crewmen, gunners, armorers, engineers, mechanics as well as a host of other skills. Trained soldiers return to their old units and they earn an additional five credits a month.

Upon the end of his enlistment, the soldier returns his weapons, but keeps his uniforms and basic gear. Any soldier who completes his enlistment may reenlist or get preference treatment in applying for any government job. If the soldier reenlists, he makes an additional ten credits a month and may now marry. Quarters and rations are provided for him and his family either on or near the post. After thirty years of active duty, the soldier may retire. He keeps his gear, weapons and equipment; receives a plot of land (typically forty acres), a mule, a plow and other farming tools and a cash bonus (currently 4,000 credits). The retiree receives a pension based on his rank (60% of his base pay) upon his retirement plus an additional five credits per year of service. In any case, retirement is mandatory at forty years of service.

[dragoon500ly]

Overall, the enlisted men of the Social Security Forces are highly disciplined and well trained. Non-Commissioned Officers are chosen by merit and tend to be ferociously competent. Officers are selected from the middle-class and are usually promoted through their political connections. Their quality ranges from brilliant to abysmal, but tends towards the lower-end of the spectrum except in the cases of those whose families make the military an honored tradiation.

Within the SSF-L, platoons are commanded by Lieutenants; commpanies/troops by a Major (with a Captain as a second-in-command); battalions by Lieutenant Colonels and regiments by Colonels. Military Regions are commanded by Brigadier Generals and there are two Major Generals, one is the Social Security Forces Chief of Staff and the other is the Commanding General of the Social Security Forces.

The SSF-L maintains three tiers of troops. The first tier is made up of the Regular Service (the professional military). These units maintain an active presence along the Free State borders and are made up of veterans. One of their own officers, Lieutenant Samuel B. Griffith, colorfully describes them thus:
"There are the professionals, the 'Old Breed' of the Social Security Forces. many had fought 'billies' in eastern kentucky, 'King's Men' in memphis and river pirates and border raiders along every mile of the Free State borders. And they have proven their ability time and again against the Morrow Scum.

They are inveterate gamblers and accomplished scroungers, who drink hair tonic in preference to post exchange beer ('horse piss'), curse with wonderful fluency, and never go to chapel ('the God-Box') unless forced to. Many chew tobacco or smoke rank cigars (cigarettes were for women and children). They have little use for libraries or organized athletics...in the field they live on jerked goat (beef jerky), the strong black coffee they call 'boiler compound', hash cook in a helmet and hardtack biscuit.

Many wear expert badges with bars for proficiency in pistol, rifle, machine gun, hand grenade, mortar, recoilless rifle and bayonet. They know their weapons and they know their tactics. They know that they are tough and they know that they are good."

The Reserves are made up of those men who have completed at least one tour of duty and then opted to return to civilian life. While still young enough to endure the rigors of military life, they form the various Reserve formations. They perform five days of drill per month and three weeks of field duty every year. Reserve units are required to be completely mobilized within forty-eight hours. When Active units must be pulled from their normal duties for operations, the local Reserve battalion is called up to replace them. In addition, Reserve units are also called up for specific operations that require more forces than the Active units can provide.

The Militia is made up those citizens who are over thirty years of age. They are not normally committed to field operations except in dire circumstances. They perform three days of drills each month and two weeks of field duty each year. When they are called up, they normally perform rear-area security duties that will free up Active and Reserve units for field duty. Militia units are required to be completely mobilized within five days.

Overall, the Reserve and Militia units are equipped and organized identically to their Active counterparts, however, their standards of training, discipline and experience tend to be considerably lower. However, they do provide the Free State with at least some trained reserves. The calling up of the Reserves and Militia leads to considerable economic impact on the entire Free State. For this reason, these units are seldom called up in more than battalion strength. At no point in Free State history, has the complete strength of the Reserves and the Militia ever been called up.

[dragoon500ly]

Future Trends

For the most part, the SSF-L plans to eliminate the Kingdom of Memphis, as well as consolidate the Free State's southern border, it is currently estimated that this will be completed within the next ten months.

Plans are underway for an expansion into West Virginia/Virginia with the intention of securing coal and natural gas reserves in this area and eventually the fertile Shenandoah Valley. This goal is to be completed within the next three years.

Also ongoing are plans to increase the size of the Active SSF-L by activating two regiments of infantry are being debated by the Committee of Five. When or if this expansion will take place is unknown at this time.

[dragoon500ly]

The Free State is divided into seven Military Regions, each of which serves as the primary military headquarters for all elements of the Social Security Forces. The Free State does not maintain formal division-sized units, instead preferring to group various elements of its regiments into ad-hoc "operational groups" for specific missions. While some may consider this to be inefficient, the Free State has never faced a threat that requires more than three regiments at any time. Units assigned to an operational group usually serve for a limited duration, with units being withdrawn as needed as combat losses, operational tempos or changing situations develop.

Military Region Able runs roughly along the Ohio River from the pre-War Kentucky-Tennessee border to the town of West Point, Kentucky. The region maintains three enclaves across the river: one at Evansville, Indiana (conducting salvage operations and the construction of a new airstrip); the second is a salient into southern Illinois (conducting operations against several groups of river pirates); and the third is in the vicinity of Sikeston, Missouri (being opened as a new farming colony as well as securing the junction of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, part of an on-going operation to place a stranglehold on the river trade). The headquarters of MR-Able is at Madisonville, Kentucky. Forces assigned to the region include the 3rd Border Scout Regiment, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 7th and 16th Infantry Regiments, 23rd and 29th Reserve Infantry Regiments, 43rd and 44th Militia Infantry Regiments, 7th Volunteer Infantry Regiment, 1st Artillery Regiment and the 1st and 2nd Ranger Companies.

Military Region Baker runs along the Ohio River from West Point, Kentucky to Portsmouth, Kentucky. It maintains a salvage operation in Cincinnati, Ohio, but otherwise maintains a watch on the mostly deserted lands to the north. Patrols from this region have penetrated as far as eighty miles and several platoon-sized outposts are maintained along likely areas of traffic. The headquarters of MR-Baker is at Williamstown, Kentucky. Forces assigned to the region include the 5th Border Scout Regiment, 3rd Cavalry Regiment, 4th and 17th Infantry Regiments, 24th and 30th Reserve Infantry Regiments, 45th and 46th Militia Infantry Regiments, 8th Volunteer Infantry Regiment, 2nd Artillery Regiment and the 3rd and 4th Ranger Companies.

Military Region Charlie runs from Portsmouth, Kentucky along the Ohio River to the vicinity of Catlettsburg, Kentucky and then roughly along the line of old State Highway 23 to Prestonsburg, Kentucky where the border joins old State Highway 80 to Hazard, Kentucky. The border then runs southwest along the former Daniel Boone Parkway to London, Kentucky and then southerly along the old Interstate 75 to Williamsburg, Kentucky. This region has maintained a low-intensity conflict with the surviving hillbillies of eastern Kentucky for the last fifty years. Current plans are underway for a new campaign against the "Barbourville Salient" and advance the border up to the a line along the Red bird River. This campaign is to commence next spring. The headquarters of MR-C is at Salyersville, Kentucky. Forces assigned to the region include the 4th Border Scout Regiment, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 6th and 10th Infantry Regiments, 25th and 31st Reserve Infantry Regiments, 47th and 48th Militia Infantry Regiments, 9th Volunteer Infantry Regiment, 3rd Artillery Regiment and the 5th and 6th Ranger Companies.

Military Region Dog runs along the Mississippi River from the pre-war Kentucky-Tennessee border down to Millington, Tennessee, the border then curves inland around Memphis, Tennessee and ends at the pre-war Tennessee-Mississippi border. An enclave is maintained at Portageville, Missouri (a farming colony). For the last twenty years, a low to mid-level conflict has been waged with the remnants of the old Kingdom of Memphis. It is expected that this conflict will finally end within the next year. This region also maintains one of the two current operational groups within the Free State. Headquarters of MR-D is at Ripley, Tennessee. Forces assigned to the region include the 6th Border Scout Regiment, 8th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd and 19th Infantry Regiments, 26th and 32nd Reserve Infantry Regiments, 49th and 50th Militia Infantry Regiments, 4th Artillery Regiment and the 7th and 8th Ranger Companies.

Operational Group Dog, conducting operations against the Kingdom of Memphis, is currently comprised of: 2nd & 3rd Squadrons, 6th Border Scouts; 1st, 2nd & 4th Squadrons, 8th Armored Cavalry; 3rd Squadron, 10th Cavalry; 2nd & 3rd Battalions, 3rd Infantry; 4th Battalion, 19th Infantry; 4th Battalion, 26th Reserve Infantry; 1st & 2nd Battalions, 32nd Reserve Infantry; 1st and 4th Volunteer Infantry Regiments; 1st, 3rd & 4th Battalions, 4th Artillery; 6th Volunteer Artillery Regiment and the 8th Ranger Company.

Military Region Easy runs roughly along the old Highway 78 from Byhalia, Mississippi to Hamilton, Alabama where it switches to follow the path of the old Highway 278 to Cullman, Alabama and then runs northward along the old Interstate 65 back to the Tennessee border at Ardmore. Due to the lack of an easily defended border, very aggressive patrols are maintained out to fifty miles from the official border and a very harsh "shoot first, shoot again and then question what's left" policy is in effect. In addition, constant skirmishing along the southern border of the Kingdom of Memphis has effectively shut down any land traffic and most river trade below the city. Headquarters of MR-E is at Savannah, Tennessee. Forces assigned to the region include the 2nd Border Scouts Regiment, 4th and 9th Cavalry Regiments, 2nd and 11th Infantry Regiments, 27th and 33rd Reserve Infantry Regiments, 51st and 52nd Militia Infantry Regiments, the 9th Artillery Regiment and the 9th and 10th Ranger Companies.

MR-E is home to the second of two operational groups currently in service. Forces currently assigned include: 1st and 3rd Battalions, 2nd Border Scouts; 1st, 2nd and 3rd Squadrons, 4th Cavalry; 2nd and 4th Battalions, 2nd Infantry; 1st and 4th Battalions, 11th Infantry, 3rd Battalion, 27th Reserve Infantry; 2nd and 4th Battalions, 33rd Reserve Infantry; 2nd and 5th Volunteer Infantry Regiments; 1st, 3rd and 4th Battalions, 9th Artillery, 7th Volunteer Artillery Regiment and the 10th Ranger Company.

The borders of Military Region Fox are not yet fixed in place due to its recent occupation (within the last five years). It runs roughly cross-country along the line Ardmore-Fayetteville-Winchester-Manchester-McMinnville-Cookeville-Wartburg-Caryville and along the line of the old Interstate 75 trace back into Kentucky. Plans are underway to recommence operations in this region after the fall of the Kingdom of Memphis with the intent of pushing the border forward to the more defensible line of Interstate 75 between Chattanooga and Knoxville. In support of this plan, the Social Security Service are maintaining an increased level of activity. Headquarters of MR-F is at Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Forces assigned to the region include the 1st Border Scout Regiment, 2nd and 11th Cavalry Regiments, 1st and 12th Infantry Regiments, 28th and 34th Reserve Infantry Regiments, 53rd and 54th Militia Infantry Regiments, 3rd and 6th Volunteer Infantry Regiments, 10th Artillery Regiment, and the 11th and 12th Ranger Companies.

Each Military Region is responsible for an area that runs from the current border back into the Free State for a distance of sixty miles. The area outside of this sixty-mile line is the responsibility of Military Region George. All training and supply needs of the SSF are administrated through this headquarters and its commander also serves as the SSF's Chief of Staff. It must be noted that no unit may exit its currently assigned region without the express written orders of the CoS. Any unit that does so is considered to be in armed rebellion against the Free State. The active units assigned to MR-G are the best equipped and most reliable units of the SSF-L. The headquarters of MR-G are located at Danville, Kentucky. Forces assigned to the region include, the 6th and 7th Armored Cavalry Regiments; 12th and 13th Reserve Armored Cavalry Regiments; 14th and 15th Militia Cavalry Regiments; 5th Mechanized Regiment; 8th Airborne Infantry Regiment; 13, 14th, 15th and 18th Motorized Infantry Regiments; 20th, 21st, and 22nd Reserve Motorized Infantry Regiments; 40th, 41st and 42nd Militia Motorized Infantry Regiments; 1st and 2nd Ranger Battalions; 5th and 8th Artillery Regiments; 11th, 12th, and 13th Reserve Artillery Regiments and the 14th, 15th and 16th Militia Artillery Regiments.

While the armed strength of the SSF-L may seem to be excessive, please remember that the Active regiments are made of those between 16-22 years old; the Reserves comprise the 23-30 year olds and the Militia comprise the 31-45 year olds. Activation of the Reserves and the Militia results in SEVERE economic disruption of the Free State. The eight battalions of the Reserve currently serving against the Kingdom of Memphis represent the largest call up in the last twenty years (it is more normal to have no more than 2-4 battalions called up). At no time of Free State history has the full strength of the Reserves and the Militia been called up.

[Father Fletch]

Excellent write up! Keep up the good work!

[dragoon500ly]

The bulk of close combat and the heaviest casualties, falls upon the shoulders of the Poor Bloody Infantry, and therefore the largest fraction of the Free State's combat power comes from its thirty infantry regiments.

Each regiment is made up of four "line" battalions, supported by a Headquarters Company (108 men); a Service Company (114 men); a Armor Company (92 men equipped with 13 M-60A1 MBTs); a cavalry troop (165 men equipped with 4 V-300/90mm, 12 V-300/25mm and 3 V-300/81mm vehicles); an Engineer Company (165 men) and an Mortar Battery (145 men equipped with 8 120mm mortars).

Each Infantry Battalion is made up of four "rifle" companies (each of 193 men equipped with 9 MG-1 SAWs, 2 MG-3 GPMGs, 1 M-2HB HMG, 3 60mm mortars and 3 90mm RR); a Weapons Company (166 men equipped with 8 MG-3 GPMG, 2 M-2HB HMGs, 6 81mm mortars and 6 90mm RRs) and a Headquarters Company (126 men). Those regiments bearing the title motorized are equipped with enough 2.5-ton trucks to transport at least 70% of its men and equipment. Those regiments bearing the title mechanized are equipped with V-300s throughout.

The Volunteer Infantry Regiments are considered to be the very worst of the SSF-L, made up of minorities, crinimals and other dregs of society. The VI Regiments have no armor company, no cavalry troop and the regimental mortar battery is equipped with 81mm mortars. The battalion weapons companies field 4 MG-3 GPMGs, 4 M-2HB HMGs, 4 60mm mortars and 2 90mm RRs). No assault rifles or squad automatic weapons are issued to the Volunteer Infantry Regiments. The usual weapon is the Free State Trade Rifle, a single-shot, muzzle-loaded and percussion-capped black-powder weapons.

The SSF-L fields twelve companies of Rangers (each of 193 men) recruited from the citizen-class. Rangers are used as special reconnaissance units are responsible for strategic reconnaissance no less than 50 miles from the official borders and no more than 300 miles from the the official borders. In reality, the Ranger Companies supports SSS counter-Project operations, conduct pre-emptive strikes on Free State enemies and update maps with current terrain information. In addition, two Ranger Battalions (equipped as line battalions) are organized and used as rapid-reaction forces in the event of the discovery of an active Morrow Project team.

The SSF-L fields no less than 12 regiments of cavalry. The 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Cavalry Regiments are exclusively a citizens-only club. They are considered to be elite formations and are equipped with the V-300 armored car in various configurations. Thre are four squadrons in each regiment; each is made up of four troops (197 men and equipped with 4 V-300/90mm, 15 V-300/25mm and 3 V-300/91mm each). A headquarters troop (264 men, equipped with 10 V-300/25 and 4 V-300/120mm) rounds out the squadron. A Headquarters Troop (180 men), a Service Company (212 men), a engineer company (193 men) and a artillery battery (120 men with 6 towed 105mm howitzers) round out the regiment.

The 9th, 10th and 11th Cavalry Regiments are recruited from the ranks of the seconds and are made up of four squadrons, each of 4 troops (193 men). A Headquarters Troop (140 men) and a Service Troop (180 men) round out the Regiment. Transportation is either by horse or by pack mule. They are equipped with standard infantry weapons.

The 6th, 7th and 8th Armored Cavalry Regiments are exclusively citizens-only. They are nicknamed "The Praetorians" and they are recruited from the most loyal personal available to the SSF-L. Each regiments fields six battalions, four consisting of one mechanzied infantry company (193 men and 14 M-2 Bradleys) and three armor companies (96 men and 14 M-1A1 Abrams MBTs), one battalion of three mechanized infantry and one armor company and a cavarly squadron made up of four troops (197 men and equipped with 4 V-300/90mm, 15 V-300/25mm and 3 V-300/91mm each). Rounding out the Regiment is a Headquarters Company (180 men), a Service Company (240 men), an engineer company (193 men) and a artillery battery (180 men and 6 towed 155mm howitzers).

When they were first activated over sixty years ago, the 6 Border Scout Regiments were highly controversial. They are they only uints in the SSF-L that recurits from all classes. These units serve only in the border regions and are rarly withdrawn. This enables the units to acquire a very detailed knowledge of the terrain adn the peoples surrounding the Free State. The Border Scouts maintain horse and foot patrols out as far as 200 miles from the official border. These units normally operate in squad or platoon-strong patrols, with an occasional troop strength patrol to show the flag. The Border Scout Regiments are made up from 4-6 squadrons, each of four 180-man horse-mounted troops. A headquarters troop (140 men) and a service troop (240 men) round out the regiment. Weapons are the standard infantry issues.

Artillery units are organized into abtteries of six tubes or launchers. Three batteries are organzied with a Headquarters and Service Battery to form a battalion. Four battalions, with a Headquarters & Service Battalion form an Artillery Regiment.

[dragoon500ly]

The standard service rifle of the SSF is the M-7 assault rifle (based on the prewar Spanish CETME-L). It is issued in folding or fixed stock versions. The rifle grenades issued are of the bullet-catcher variety and require no special ammunitions to use.

The standard squad automatic weapon is the MG-1 (based on the prewar CETME Ameli) chambered in 5.56mm. Heavier weapons include the MG-3 general purpose machine gun (chambered in 7.62mm) and the M-2HB heavy machine gun (chambered in 12.7mm).

Heavy weapons include: the 60mm, 81mm and 120mm mortars, and the 90mm recoilless rifle, based on prewar American issues.

The grenades issued are standard US Army versions.

The standard sidearm is the Smith & Wesson Model 59, normally issuued to officers, NCOs, vehicle and weapons crews. These weapons are all reliable and simple designs manufactured to the highest standards.

The armor units use the M-2 Bradley and the M-1A1 and M-60A1 main battle tanks. While these are sophisticated designs, they are built to the standards that the Free State can maintain. For example, the tanks have thinner armor and of much lower quality. Cannon rounds are limited to solid shot, high explosive and canister. There no TOW launchers on the M-2s, and these vehicles lack stabilized gun platforms, laser rangefinders and night vision gear.

[dragoon500ly]

Few working aircraft survived the war. What few that did exist were used until they fell apart. But having planes is useful and so the Free State looked for designs of proven ruggedness and utility. Originally, the intention was to build jet fighters, but two factors prevented this. First, none of their neighbor's, indeed, no one else in the world as far as the know, had jet aircraft. Second, the technical problems of manufacturing jet engines were simply to great. Instead, the Free State duplicated four aircraft that they had prototypes of, courtesy of a Confederate Air Force air show at Bowling Green. The standard fighter of the Free State is the P-47D Thunderbolt, a proven design (max air speed of 428 mph and a combat radius of 450 miles on internal fuel) noted for its extreme ruggedness and its heavy firepower (eight .50 caliber machine guns and a 2,000lb bomb load). For the air support mission that the SSF would need, it was perfect. Currently, sixteen squadrons of eight aircraft each are in service.

The second aircraft is the B-25 medium bomber. This twin engine aircraft is built in two versions, the first is the B-25H ground assault aircraft, which is armed with a 75mm cannon, fourteen .50-caliber machineguns (mounted in twin tail and dorsal turrets, two single side mounts and eight fixed in the nose) and a 3,200lb bomb load. Two squadrons of eight aircraft are in service.

The second version is the B-25J medium bomber, which is armed with eighteen .50-caliber machine guns (mounted in twin dorsal and tail turrets, two single side mounts and twelve fixed in the nose) and a 4,000lb bomb load. Four squadrons of eight aircraft each are in service. Both versions have a maximum air speed of 275mph and a combat radius of 675 miles.

The fourth and final aircraft is the C-47 transport. This twin engine aircraft has a max speed of 227 mph and a combat radius of 773 miles with a useful payload of 4,000lbs. Ten squadons of eight aircraft each are in service.

The SSF-A is a status service and its pilots are chosen only from the ranks of Citizens. This has a detrimental effect on the quality of its pilots since many marginal pilots stay in due to their political connections. Further the SSF-A has a somewhat callous attitude towards the SSF-L in that whn calls for support are received, the pilots tend to be somewhat careless as to where they dump their ordnance. This has the effect of making the SSF-L reluctant to call in air strikes under any but the most desperate situations.

[dragoon500ly]

The SSF-A continues its policy of construction of twelve auxiliary fields that, once completed, will allow for greater flexibility in its flight operations. It is intended to provide a Maintenance Flight, a Support Flight and a Ground Defense Flight for each of the auxiliary strips. This, needless to say, is running into a great deal of resistance from Council Member Madsen Wilson Kirby III. Also facing serious opposition from the Council Member are expansion plans to build two new air fields, along with the personnel and equipment to man them.

[dragoon500ly]

The SSF-A maintains two Air Bases, each os responsible for the air space within its sector.

Each Base controls two Air Fields. Squadrons are normally assigned to a specific Base or Field.

Social Security Forces-Air Division Base David A. Hunter (Danville, KY). This is the headquarters of the SSF-A and is under the personal command of the Air Force Chief of Staff. Hunter Air Base is responsible for all flight operations within the eastern Free State. Assigned to Hunter Air Base are the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Fighter, the 17th and 18th Bombardment, 21st Ground Assault and the 23rd, 24th and 25th Transport Squadrons.

Social Security Forces-Air Division Field Phillip T. Studebaker (Cynthiana, KY). This field is responsible for flight operations in the northeastern sector of the Free State. Assigned to Studebaker Field are the 13th and 14th Fighter and 30th Transport Squadrons.

Social Security Forces-Air Division Field William B. Kirby (Murfreesboro, TN). This field is responsible for flight operations in the southeastern sector of the Free State. Kirby Field has the 11th and 12th Fighter and 31st Transport Squadrons.

Social Security Forces-Air Division Base Arnold F. Carswell (Russelville, KY). Carswell Air Base is responsible for flight operations within the western Free State. Assigned to Caswell Base are the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th Fighter, 19th and 20th Bombardment, 22nd Ground Assault and 26, 27th and 28th Transport Squadrons.

Social Security Forces-Air Division Field William O. MacKinnon (Louisville, KY). This field is responsible for flight operations in the northwestern sectro of teh Free State. Squadrons assigned to MacKinnon Field include the 15th and 16th Fighter and 32nd Transport.

Social Security Forces-Air Division Field Victor W. Getter (Jackson, TN). This field is responsible for flight operations in the southwestern sectot of the Free State. Assigned to Getter Field are the 9th and 10th Fighter and 29th Transport Squadrons.

Each Air Base has a Maintenacne Squadron (of four 250-man Flights), a Support Squadron (of four 250 man Flights) and a Base Defense Squadron consisting of four Ground Defense Flights (each organized as a standard infantry company) and two Air Defense Flights (each with 142 men equipped with 12 M-55 Quad .50-caliber machineguns mounts) and a Headquarters Flight (180 men).

Each Air Field has a Headquarters Flight (110 men), a Maintenance Squadron (of two 150-man flights), a Support Squadron (of three 150 man flights) and a Base Defense Squadron of two Ground Defence and one Air Defence flights).

[dragoon500ly]

The Social Security Forces-Water Division is responsible for patrol duties and maintaining traffic on the Ohio, Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers. Numerically, it is the smallest of the three Divisions, fielding some one hundred and seventy patrol boats, some forty tugs and over three hundred barages plus supporting staff. Two Marine Regiments (same organization and equipments as a SSF-L Infantry Regiment) are available for amphibious operations.

The SSF-W currently has three classes of patrol craft.

The Mackinaw-class is a 14 displacement ton vessel equipped with two twin .50-caliber machineguns (fore and aft). It is capable of a top speed of 20 knots, a range of 300 miles and a crew of 7. This is the main patrol craft with over 65 in service.

The sixty Hawkins-class patrol boats are designed for use in shallow waters. It displaces 9 tons, has a top speed of 14 knots and a range of 200 miles. It has a five crew and is armed with a single twin .50-caliber machine gun mount forward and two single MG-3s aft.

The newest addition to the SSF-W is its five Crawford-class gunboats. These displace 28 tons and have atop speed of 24 knots, with a range of 300 miles and a crew of 18. It is armed with a 25mm autocannon forward and three twin .50-caliber machine guns (amidships and aft).

The Marine Regiments provide personnel to supplement the patrol boat crews, provide security for naval installations and provide customs patrols as well as performing their traditional infantry duties. Due to the nature of their duties, the Marines seldom operate in units of larger than company size.

[dragoon500ly]

The SSF-W is continuning its program of conducting river surveys and clearing channels of debris. The resulting economic boom for the Free State has silenced, at least for now, Council Member Madsen Wilson Kirby III's opposition to any military expansion (at least for the Water Division).

Plans are in place to construct an additional fifteen units of the new Crawford-class gunboats as well as an additional forty units of the Mackinaw and Hawkins-class patrol boats.

[dragoon500ly]

Social Security Forces-Water Division Base Henry K. Parker (Louisville, KY). Headquarters of the Water Division and home not only to the largest contingent of the Water Division but to Hunter Shipyards, the largest shipbuilding concern in the Free State. Parker naval base is responsible for all operation along the Ohio River (from Carrolton, KY) down to the Mississippi River. Units assigned to Parker Naval Base include:

1st Marine Regiment (-3rd & 4th Battalions)
Patrol Group One (PATGRP1)
Patrol Division One (Mackinaw-class): PG-01 Mackinaw; PG-02
Androscoggin; PG-03 Chatauqua; PG-04 Escanaba and PG-05 Iroquois.
Patrol Division Two (Mackinaw-class): PG-41 Unalga; PG-42 Pamlico; PG-43
Argo; PG-44 Ariadne; PG-45 Atalanta.
Patrol Division Three (Crawford-class): PG-126 Crawford; PG-127 Kimball;
PG-128 Legare; PG-129 Marion; PG-130 Pulaski.
Patrol Division Four (Hawkins-class): PG-66 Harold Allen; PG-67 Edward
Angel; PG-68 Kelly Baggs; PG-69 Edward Barnes; PG-70 James Beecher.
Patrol Division Five (Hawkins-class): PG-81 Joe Griffin; PG-82 Ashley Hicks;
PG-83 Robert Jennings; PG-84 John King; PG-85 Raymond Larsen.

Social Security Forces-Water Division Base Allan C. MacLean (Maysville, KY). Units stationed at this base are responsible for all naval activities along the Ohio River (from Carrollton, KY to Huntington, WV). A major coal terminal is also located here and the craft of PATGRP2 are often assigned convoy duty for coal barges heading downstream.

3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment
Patrol Group Two (PATGRP2)
Patrol Division Six (Mackinaw-class): PG-06 Klamath; PG-07 Mendota;
PG-08 Minnetonka; PG-09 Owasco; PG-10 Pontchartrain.
Patrol Division Seven (Mackinaw-class): PG-51 Galatea; PG-52 Hermes;
PG-53 Icarus; PG-54 Nemesis; PG-55 Nike.
Patrol Division Eight (Hawkins-class): PG-91 John Nix; PG-92 Robert
Pearson; PG-93 John Russell; PG-94 George Stockley; PG-95 John Toon.
Patrol Division Nine (Hawkins-class): PG-101 Samuel Cone; PG-102
Alexander Donovan; PG-103 James Green; PG-104 Ray Hood; PG-105
John Kerns.

Social Security Forces-Water Division Base Ryan V. Hawkins (Hickman, KY). Units assigned to this base are responsible for all naval activities along the Mississippi River (from Wickliffe, KY to Memphis, TN). Units from this base are responsible for conducting a blockade of Memphis in support of Land Division Operations against the Kingdom of Memphis.

4th Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment
Patrol Group Three (PATGRP3)
Patrol Division Ten (Mackinaw-class): PG-11 Sebago; PG-12 Wachusett;
PG-13 Winnebago; PG-14 Winona; PG-15 Storts.
Patrol Division Eleven (Mackinaw-class): PG-31 Nourmahal; PG-32
Shawnee; PG-33 Haida; PG-34 Modoc; PG-35 Mojave.
Patrol Division Twelve (Mackinaw-class): PG-56 Pandora; PG-57 Perseus;
PG-58 Thetis; PG-59 Triton; PG-60 Active.
Patrol Division Thirteen (Hawkins-class): PG-86 William McCall; PG-87
Frederick Metcalf; PG-88 Edward Miller; PG-89 William Moore; PG-90
James Nelson.
Patrol Division Fourteen (Hawkins-class): PG-111 Kenneth Moore; PG-112
Charles Bryant; PG-113 William Nugent; PG-114 William Pallesen; PG-115
Melvin Parr.

Social Security Forces-Water Division Base William F. Gunston (Savannah, TN). Units assigned to this base are responsible for all naval activities along the Tennessee River (from Riverton, AL up to Perryville, TN).

2nd Marine Regiment (-2nd & 4th Battalions)
Patrol Group Four (PATGRP4)
Patrol Division Fifteen (Mackinaw-class): PG 16 Campbell; PG-17 Duane;
PG-18 Ingham; PG-19 Taney; PG-20 Spencer.
Patrol Division Sixteen (Mackinaw-class): PG-46 Aurora; PG-47 Calypso;
PG-48 Cyane; PG-49 Daphne; PG-50 Dione.
Patrol Division Seventeen (Mackinaw-class): PG-61 Agassiz; PG-62 Alert;
PG-63 Bonham; PG-64 Boutwell; PG-65 Cahoone.
Patrol Division Eighteen (Hawkins-class): PG-71 John Bevon; PG-72 Harold
Book; PG-73 Arthur Cantrall; PG-74 George Clark; PG-75 Julius Cotton.
Patrol Division Nineteen (Hawkins-class): PG-106 Daniel Koontz; PG-107
Frank Lawson; PG-108 Wade McCoy; PG-109 William Mead; PG-110
Kenneth Merrill.

Social Security Forces-Water Division Base James F. Cocksure (McKinnon, TN). Units assigned to this base are responsible for all naval activities along the Tennessee River (from Camden, TN to Paducah, KY). Since this area is well within the borders of the Free State, Cocksure Base is used to provide training and refitting of units from other bases.

2nd Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment
Patrol Group Five (PATGRP5)
Patrol Division Twenty (Mackinaw-class): PG-21 Bibb; PG-22 Algonquin;
PG-23 Comanche; PG-24 Mohawk; PG-25 Onondaga.
Patrol Division Twenty One (Mackinaw-class): PG-36 Tampa; PG-37
Carrabasset; PG-38 Kickapoo; PG-39 Ossipee; PG-40 Tallapoosa.
Patrol Division Twenty Two (Hawkins-class): PG-116 John Plumb; PG-117
Donald Roberts; PG-118 Gordon Ruth; PG-119 Kenneth Seaton; PG-120
Charles Selby.
Patrol Division Twenty Three (Hawkins): PG-121 Howard Thomas; PG-122
Dean Voight; PG-123 Harry White; PG-124 Dean Winters; PG-125 Joseph
Woodford.

Social Security Forces- Water Division Base George S. Weber (Tuscumbia, AL). Units assigned are responsible for all naval activities along the Tennessee River (from Riverton, AL to Decatur, AL). Currently Patrol Group Six is operating closely with SSF-L units of Military Region Fox in operations against resistance to Free State rule in the area. The commandant of the base, Commander Neal Prescott, is conducting a series of operations with the goal of clearing the approaches to as well as the body of Guntersville Lake. Numerous ambushes by locals, however, have cause heavy damage to several of his vessels. Plans are underway to reinforce his command with Patrol Divisions Twenty and Twenty Two.

4th Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment
Patrol Group Six (PATGRP6)
Patrol Division Twenty Four (Mackinaw): PG-26 Tahoma; PG-27 Champlain;
PG-28 Itasca; PG-29 Mocoma; PG-30 Sebec.
Patrol Division Twenty Five (Hawkins-class): PG-76 James Davis; PG-77
Adam Dinges; PG-78 Philip Evan; PG-79 James Faulkner; PG-80 William
Gallagher.
Patrol Division Twenty Six (Hawkins): PG-96 Peter Wilson; PG-97 Robert
Allard; PG-98 Dean Brown; PG-99 Walter Carroll; PG-100 James Casey.

[dragoon500ly]

WARNING! The following aspects of my background on the Free State are intended for gaming purposes only! By no means do they reflect my own viewpoints but rather reflect the twisted extreme values that help make the KFS such wonderfully evil villains….material is based on New America from the T2K system as well as several ultra-national groups....

Philosophies
The Free State believes in the “natural and inherent superiority” of whites over all other races and in people of Northern European descent over all other whites. As well as their fanatical belief in the racial inferiority of Semitics, Negroes, Slavs and Orientals as well as those subscribing to any religious beliefs other than tat of the Aryan Church of God, the Righteous Arm of Heaven or the Church of the Chosen. All are outwardly conservative Christian in appearance, but with the embellishment of a number of nonstandard doctrines. A common theme among, for example, is that Christ was not divine, but rather, a popular revolutionary, the victim of political expediency and collusion between Jews and their Roman governors, who won divinity by giving his life for the cause. In addition, a variety of bizarre notions are part of this faith, among them, the idea that England and not Israel is the Promised Land described in the Bible, and that therefore, the British and not the Jews are the chosen people. And concluding with the belief that the modern identification of Israel as the Promised Land and the Jews as God’s Chosen are all part of a heinous plot perpetrated by a worldwide cabal of socialists and liberals designed to lead true Christians astray.

The core of Free State ideology is the belief that certain individuals, the so-called “Natural Aristocracy” are superior to other racial, social or economic groups. The Free State government has never made a public announcement of what determines who is a Natural Aristocrat. In fact, only the Committee of Five determines who is a Natural Aristocrat. As a result, a complicated tier system of classification is maintained, and a citizen’s rights under the government depend upon how they are classified.

Another important feature of the Free State is its belief that all aspects of life must be under rigid control. The economy must be carefully managed in order to prevent inflation and unemployment. Morality must be controlled in order to prevent moral decline from setting in. Science must be controlled in order to prevent another worldwide disaster from occurring. Seconds and Thirds (those enjoying only partial Free State citizenship) must be controlled because they are incapable of controlling themselves. Education, religion, marriage---all must be controlled by the Free State in order to produce more Natural Aristocrats. With this in mind, the higher officials of the Free State are encouraged to maintain several wives, since their superior genes must be passed on to as many descendants as possible in order to maintain the advancement of the Race.

The Hierarchy of the Free State
Of course, only Natural Aristocrats can occupy all senior executive and leadership positions within the Free State. It is believed that only Natural Aristocrats can be advanced beyond the 30th Tier, although the exact criteria is known only to the Committee of Five. The benefits of full citizenship, including trial by a jury of peers and the privilege of facing one’s accusers; of voting; of free choice in marriage and other matters; and of writing and implementing laws, are reserved solely for the Natural Aristocrats.

In a semantic tangle worthy of Orwell’s “Newspeak,” “Citizens” do not exercise full citizenship, but they do occupy the bulk of positions, including low-level and mid-level executive positions below that of the 30th Tier. A Natural Aristocrat board must approve marriages and rights can be arbitrarily suspended or modified by their fiat.

Below the Citizens are the “Seconds” and “Thirds.” These people have few rights, although it is possible for hard-working and loyal Seconds to become Citizens and for Thirds to become Seconds. The Free State openly acknowledges the dangers of establishing a completely static, caste-bound social structure, or one in which there is no personal advantage to working for the State. Advancement within the system is, however, slow and subject to bureaucratic red tape and inconsistencies and increasingly dominated by wealth and politics the higher one climbs within the hierarchy. Strangely, advancement in the ranks for the selected Negroes, Orientals and Hispanics is fairly rapid until the 10th Tier or so is reached, then promotion slows to a near standstill. Some misguided people will claim that this selected advancement is only a sop to keep these minorities quiet. However, the Social Security Service proudly claims that this is “merely a statistical fluke” and that their “complex and rigorous scientific testing insures that all will rise to the limit of their natural abilities.”

Finally, there are the Long Contract Laborers, the Free State’s ultimate solution both to unemployment and to the chronic need for cheap, ready labor. Long Contract Laborers, “LCs” or “Elsies” have no rights whatsoever, and exist at the whim of the Natural Aristocrat leadership. They live in camps under the direction of mid-level directors, who are backed by armed Social Security Service troops and provide a ready labor pool for construction or civic projects. They are a convenient dumping ground for undesirables such as political enemies and dissidents, criminals, itinerants and the unemployed, as well as the random victims of Social Security Services sweeps through the minority cantonments. The official position of the Elsies is that of “wards of the state” and a detailed public misinformation program argues that the Elsies are given productive work, adequate clothing, food, shelter and medical care which they would be unable to provide for themselves in these troubles times. In fact, the Elsies are slaves in all but name and hundreds of thousands of innocents have vanished into the Free State Long Contract Laborer Camps over the years, never to be seen again.

Goals
The goals of the Free State can be summed up in two words: Controlled Change. The citizens of the Free State believe that the pre-war United States was completely out of control by the time of the Final War. Drug addiction, crime, homosexuality, capitalism, rampant liberal-socialism, outright communism, general anarchy and total chaos were running roughshod over “traditional American values.” The Free State believes that society must be controlled because most of humanity is inherently unable to control its own baser emotions or to govern itself.

The Free State has formulated an elaborate pseudo-scientific racial classification system based on the alleged superiority of certain traits in those people it terms “Natural Aristocrats.” This is not racist, but merely a scientific classification system based upon intelligence tests and genetic examinations is the Free State’s claim. And, of course, it is “purely statistic coincidence” that the natural Aristocrat genes manifest themselves most often in white, Northern German, Scandinavian or English males.

The Free State’s out right hatred of Communists, Socialists, Liberals, Pacifists, Homosexuals as well as Drug Addicts, Hedonists, Hare Krishnas, Scientologists, Seventh Day Adventists, Mormons, Roman Catholics, most Protestant denominations, Feminists, Welfare Mothers and a host of other untouchables would keep a legion of psychoanalysts busy for decades. Their thinking is not original, it is nothing more than the philosophy of the 19th Century elitist/eugenicist movements recycled with new jargon.

While professing such profound dislikes might have been regard with bemused tolerance by their fellow citizens before the war, the horrendous situations brought about by the nuclear exchange has ensured that the Free State has become the very model of the new “American” way of life.

The Free State has no intention of senselessly weakening themselves in protracted, overt wards of extermination. They have instead adopted the modest goal of combining a declining “inferior” birth rate with casualties taken by its “heroic Thirds” on behalf of a society bent upon bringing all freedoms and all citizens under their own control. In this respect, the Free State is far more heinous than Hitler’s Germany.

[dragoon500ly]

Foreign and Internal Policies
The Committee of Five has two separate policies: one for internal political action within their immediate zone of control, and a second, “foreign policy” for dealing with less immediate threats within the larger theater of operations.

The combined effort can best be summed up as “keep potential adversaries occupied with a variety of divide and conquer tactics while bringing the maximum possible force to bear against those threatening the immediate zone of local control.” The external threats are, for the most part, dealt with via covert agents, subverting local democracies and supporting the major substructures of the various warlords who have risen since the war. In a surprising, even breathtaking, radical policy, the Free State allied itself with the minorities for the purpose of exploiting their large manpower pool in order to seal off the borders of the Free State from interference. While the very notion of treating with these “inferior people” would seem to be highly unorthodox to the Free State’s founders, the ability to secure the Free State in the aftermath of nuclear war by the act of allying themselves with the various minorities with complete confidence in their devotion allowed the Free State the ability to operate freely and securely. In the one hundred and forty years since this policy was started, this confidence has been absolutely justified. The result is that during the critical early years, any power hostile to the Free State, and any criminal trying to escape Free State justice, had to pass through territory where the local population supported the Free State.

This foreign policy is run almost completely by the Social Security Service. Their handpicked agents keep the barbarians off the doorstep of the Free State. These agents are some of the brightest, most self-sufficient and resourceful operatives ever to practice the ancient crafts of murder, blackmail and bribery. Publicly, the Free State maintains the image of a kindly and efficient group of modern-day Zionists, laboring to build a new life out of the ruins of a post-nuclear America. Social Action Projects such as building sewage treatment plants, drilling a new water well, building a rural electrical power plant, building schools and churches are broadcast proudly to all, thus demonstrating to all, the high moral and ethical position of the Free State. Meanwhile, its agents conduct a brutal foreign policy that out-cheats, out-bribes, out-assassinated and out-manipulates anything that ancient Constantinople ever did to create the modern meaning of “Byzantine Intrigues.”

The Social Security Service maintains a network of agents that covers much of the Eastern and Midwestern United States. Their operations range from supporting a bandit kingdom on the shores of Lake Michigan, to a quasi-military pirate empire in New England. The SSS supports both sides in a bloody and bitter mini-civil war in Virginia and has people in Iowa eating their own belts and shoe leather in order to survive.

Internal policy is equally convoluted. The Free State is run like a cross between an armed kibbutz and a fundamentalist revival retreat. Everywhere that one goes within the Free State, one sees happy faces and busy hands, all working at feeding society, keeping it clothed, educating the young, maintaining the vital community facilities and meeting, classifying and integrating all new comers into what appears to be a strict, but reasonably fair and efficient society. There are no gas chambers, no concentration camps and no downtrodden masses of brutally oppressed slave races. Free State society projects a rather martial, but not a draconian regimented air of people, “forced by the harsh necessities of the world they find themselves in, to take up arms and protect what they have labored to build here by the honest sweat of their brows…etc…etc…etc.” If portions of the Free State seem a little biased or unfair, the fault, if there is one, lies with the current times, not the present government, which is “obviously doing the very best it can under trying circumstances.” As far as such things as racial animosities and crime go, prewar America should have had it so good. This is not Heaven on Earth, and the Millennium has come and gone without bringing a deliverer. But until Christ can get around to it, the Free State Committee of Five seems to be doing just fine by the citizenry, and they are giving this new nation a really good running try at being, if not paradise, at least not a living hell either. “Now, if only our neighbors could see things more reasonably.”

While shortages, hard work and even the minor stubs that occasionally gum up the government bureaucracy may provide a sticking point in the craw of most residents, it is obvious to most people who live here (and they will tell you so) that this is a great place to live and to raise a family. It would be an even better place if it weren’t for the intransigence of the (fill in the blank with the name of the current enemy)---”that slimy and unspeakable pack of low-down curs, who continue to resist those kindly folk who govern this great Free State.” The heartbreak, the grief, the genuine sorrow, and the pity of the Committee over the losses suffered by heroic boys who are fighting this hateful war is such a terrible thing to see that no one could possibly doubt that they have ending it and bringing peace as their up-most goal. “But it’s those lowlifes in (name the current location undergoing the Free State’s intentions) who’ve brought this grief and suffering down on us common folk. And don’t ever forget that everybody suffers when those murdering Morrow terrorists attack the citizens and other residents of this great community.”

And so the propaganda goes…

[robj3]

Thanks for the interesting posts, dragoon500ly.

Some comments:
The military seems very large, with over 100,000 troops in the land force alone.

This is getting towards the size of the Israeli Defense Force (187,000 active,
over 500,000 reserves).

Using Israel as an analog, this implies a total population of about 7-8 million.

Assuming lower levels of defense spending, the population base needs to be commensurately bigger.

I know you stated at the beginning that your version of the KFS follows the Appalachians into New England - quite a bit bigger than Tim McF's 'official' version in 'Bullets and Bluegrass'.

The weakness of an authoritarian society is that one day, the populace will no longer consent to be ruled.

The goal of the Morrow Project is to hasten this process, and there are
ways to do it:

'From Dictatorship to Democracy' by Gene Sharp.

http://http://www.aeinstein.org/organizations98ce.html

There are a number of potential fault lines to exploit with the corrupt apartheid oligarchy you have described.

[dragoon500ly]

Originally Posted by robj3

Thanks for the interesting posts, dragoon500ly.

Some comments:
The military seems very large, with over 100,000 troops in the land force alone.

This is getting towards the size of the Israeli Defense Force (187,000 active,
over 500,000 reserves).

Using Israel as an analog, this implies a total population of about 7-8 million.

Assuming lower levels of defense spending, the population base needs to be commensurately bigger.

I based the Social Security Forces on the IDF for a reason. Only about a third of the SSF-L is active at any time. the remaining two thirds are the reserves who are called up when needed. And like a general call-up of the IDF, calling out the reserves in the SSF-L results in MAJOR economic problems. There are just enough active forces to maintain the KFS borders and carry out an expedition or two, in this case, the extensive call up of reserves for the fighting on the Memphis front.

I know you stated at the beginning that your version of the KFS follows the Appalachians into New England - quite a bit bigger than Tim McF's 'official' version in 'Bullets and Bluegrass'.

The 'official KFS' in my campaign covers almost all of KY-TN with offshoots into AL, MS, MO, IA, IL, OH and WV. Their major hoals are to expand into the Virginia (eventually the Shenadoah Valley farmland) and into Missouri (the goal of controlling trade on the Mississippi River).

The weakness of an authoritarian society is that one day, the populace will no longer consent to be ruled.

The goal of the Morrow Project is to hasten this process, and there are
ways to do it:

'From Dictatorship to Democracy' by Gene Sharp.

http://http://www.aeinstein.org/organizations98ce.html

There are a number of potential fault lines to exploit with the corrupt apartheid oligarchy you have described.

Just gives a Project Team more chances to be...creative when taking on the KFS!

[dragoon500ly]

For those on the inside of Free State society, life is startlingly normal. People do things pretty much as they were done before the bombs fall...more or less. Resources are scarce. There is no one in the Free State who has not been raised no stories of hunger, thirst, lawlessness, anarchy or terrorism in one form or another. The state repeats this thems continuously. Children have it drummed into them at the earliest possible age. Scarcity meanc that society must make sacrifices in order to survive.

Sacrifices are demanded of everyone, from the most humble to the highest. The regime inures that these sacrifices are well known and appreciated by all. Those at the bottom of society are reminded that those on top willingly share their burden by the repetitious advertisments of that sacrifice by the media. Campaigns to help those less able to help themselves are aimed at the young and idealistic youth of the lower classes. The sacrifices of those who carry society's burdens are made clear and unavoidable to the children of the privileged so that they may tread less heavily. THis is deliberately aimed at softening the blows and bruises that the institutionalized class structure does to those on the bottom. The purpose is to weed out those expressions of smug superiority and the self-aggrandizing, ego-tripping of those who flaunt their privilege in the faces of those who are being so systematically exploited by their society. Appearing to hold overt and blatantly raciest attitudes and behaviors is strenuously discouraged even while society itself maintains and increases its genocidal policy. The result is a very confusing message to those at the bottom. On one hand, shortages means that a young negro couple will have to postpone a much desired wedding until the young man receives his discharge from the Social Security Force. The reality is that he has an excellent change of being killed or maimed in the service of his society for the opportunity to have even one child with his prospective wife. The couple is reminded at every turn that times are hard and that resources are in short supply. Children are very valuable and must be carefully planned and provided for out of the meager resources that all citizens of the Free State must share. Patience, pridence and conservation are not just virtues, they are a way of life. If that young man makes it home from the fighting, he can be certain that his son or daughter will receive their full share of whatever meager resources are available. If this does not occur, it is because of shortages caused by the terrorist enemies of the state, not because the state itself is keeping him from what is due him and his family.

The children of the privileged are not the only ones to see the Free State's messaage of reducing overt acts of racism. The Free State's minorities can also see that the state, through its media outlets, strongly disapproves of derogatory and defamatory behavior. Racial slurs and hate crimes are not tolerated within the Free State. What is not seen is the hard-hitting investigative reporting that, in the days before the war, would have blown the lid off the institutionalized raw deal handed out by the Free State. The only messages getting out to the public at large are exactly those that the Committee of Five wants the population to see.

The Free State's three major classes of rights and privilege is not intended to keep the minorities at the bottom, but to "protect" them from exploitation by those above them in society. Thirds are not serfs without rights, they are valued and respected partners of society. They perform their specific function in a society that provides for each according to (society's perception of its) needs, from each (again, as society views it) person's abilities. Justice. Fairness. Equality. The Free State has it all for everyone. But not necessarily in perfectly equal proportions.

[dragoon500ly]

The Free State goes to tremendous lengths to honor its "fallen martyrs." Slain Thirds are held up as shining examples of the kind of heroism and self-sacrifice that can earn a Third honor and glory. Occasionally, a live hero is produced. He or she is paraded, wined, dined and publicly heaped with promotions, privileges and other rewards. Depending upon the Free State's agitprop needs, these individuals then slip back into obscurity, are later discredited and publicly disgraced, or die as in later terrorist attacks.

As it is the Free State itself that commits these terrorist atrocities, the Social Security Service can easily regulate the level and intensity of the "struggle against terrorism" in order to provide calm and tranquility, or to psychologically "bomb Pearl Harbor" and arouse the population to pitches of righteous anger over the villainous crimes committed by the Free State''s current scapegoat of choice. The methods used are far more subtle and sophisticated than the above example would suggest. The Social Security Service's agitprop staff can fine-tune their population and play them like a Stradivarius.

The Free State controls the news (television, radio and newspapers, each aimed at a different segment of society). All are jealously guarded by the keepers of public morals and decency.

Gobbels would have been proud.

[dragoon500ly]

The Free State has a special section on the medical staffs composed of "healers" with more dedication to the Committe of Five than to Hippocrates and their medical oaths. These healers have routine access to all citizen's medical records and can cause the subject of their attentions to report for additional medical tests as needed. Subjects with histories of heart attacks or seizures are extremely easy to terminate in ways that guarantee the victim's death certificate will read "died of natural causes." Other "medical problems" can result in heart or kidney failure, and the ever-prevalent "fever of unknown origin" can silence a noisy dissenter forever. The level of medical care has declined in spite of everything that the Free State tries to do about. People die every day in what would have once been considered routine, even risk-free medical procedures. No one can ever accuse the Free State of running death wards or neglecting their separate but unequal segments of society. The resources are spread so that everyone receives free health care. But like everywhere else on the Free State, the "cream" rises to the top.

[dragoon500ly]

Free State philosophy places the female Natural Aristocrat upon a pedestal, and there she stays. The Free State ideal of womanhood is embodied in the concept of motherhood and family---large families are preferred and begun when the bride has barely reached sufficient physical development to begun having children of her own. This is supposed to be at the age of sixteen, but in some cases, as young as fourteen. Some brides have been even younger, but that causes people to “talk,” a situation that a politically upward Free State young man does well to avoid.

The daughters of powerful or influential Free State movers and shakers are little more than pawns in the political power games that underlies the Natural Aristocracy’s hierarchy. Marriages between those of the “right” social classes are encouraged; hence the existence of the “marriageable lists.” The Free State is not so blatantly racist as to have draconian “mixed marriage” laws, but the consequences of marrying beneath one’s station can be very severe nevertheless. Such a poor choice will effect the higher-class partner of the rest of their life. It will interfere with latter promotions or even end an ambitious man’s rise through the hierarchy.

On the other hand, marrying the daughter of a rich and politically powerful man within one’s own class enhances a man’s prestige. This leads to some interesting situations, such as when a young man marries a woman three or four times his age in order to curry favor with her powerful male relatives. A widow with a large brood of children need not worry about finding someone to support her and her children of she is politically or even materially well-connected. Ambitious young suitors will be falling over themselves trying to win her hand (and even more importantly, the favor of her male relatives).

Having a large number of children gets a NA mother recognition, honors, and most importantly, extra governmental resources as well as the title of “Heroine of the Race.” For a Natural Aristocrat mother, having a large family is not a crushing burden. There are plenty of women among the Thirds who can be hired as nannies, governess, laundress, cooks and maids. A large number of children confirms a husband’s virility and is yet another demonstration of his “natural superiority”. For those of high rank, multiple wives also contribute to a man’s progeny. In the Free State, it is the practice for the husband to install each of his bride’s in her own home, or at least with her own suite of rooms (complete with separate kitchens and bathrooms). Having more than one wife is not an undertaking for a poorly paid junior clerk deep within the KFS bureaucracy. It takes power, prestige, and most of all, money and access to resources in a big way.

While a senior wife (or wives) will be consulted about her husband’s intentions to take another woman to wife, she has little actual say in the matter. Free State laws are quite clear about such things as a husband’s “natural prerogatives.” In theory, each wife is supposed to be treated equally by her husband. In practice, jealousies and rivalries among wives for the attention of their mutual husband are rife. Senior wives tend to gang up on the “new girl” and make her life miserable until she complies with the established “pecking order”. Wives are not without resources of their own, however. Those items that a wife may have been given over the years, from a saucepan to a palace are hers to keep. She may own property in her own name. Some may have been given gifts as wedding presents from parents anxious to get a struggling couple off to a good start. The roof over her head and her children’s heads is hers for as long as she lives, and she may pass property on at her death, but, she may not buy or sell anything without her husband’s permission. The man, not the woman, controls what she owns and how it is used.

The ultimate source of a woman’s status is that of her man. A woman who remains a wife has only the status she receives by sharing the reflected glory of her husband, unless, and this is a very exceptional situation, she holds by virtue of some skill, talent or unique ability, an independent position of her own within the political hierarchy, or as a result of some critical shortage in some vital skill, the state demands her services in the work place. Many young, unmarried Natural Aristocrats work at such jobs as rolling bandages or other similar positions without status.

[dragoon500ly]

The single most descriptive word for the Free State is “Controlled.”

Everything in this society is controlled for the betterment of the society as a whole. This control is intense, pervasive and intrusive. Free State propagandists harp on the need to spy out and inform on any suspicious activities or behavior. The people are repeatedly reminded that the Free State provides them with the only real security available in a very unsafe world. And the propagandists are preaching to a very receptive audience.

Control begins in the cradle. With the slogan “Every Baby a Wanted Baby!”, the Free State imposes its own unique brand of social responsibility and public morality upon their brave new world. Every person wishing to join the Free State for any reason, must be classified. Once classified and a review of medical status is completed (including a through examination for any communicable diseases), the Citizen, Second or Third is asked if they have any interest in marriage. If so, they are entered on the “approved” marriage list for their class. Persons not on this list are ineligible to marry others in their own class. No one is required to marry anyone else. Citizens who marry Seconds have their own status lowered to that of their spouse. Within marriage, the Free State insists upon control over how many children a couple may have. The permit to have children is specified on the Free State Marriage License.

For Natural Aristocrats, the license to have children is unlimited. For Citizens the basic number is two children, with excellent prospects of one or more additional children being approved. The higher a Citizen’s rank and more meritorious his career, the more likely approval becomes. For Seconds, the license is for one child with applications considered for a second on a case by case basis. As with Citizens, rank and meritorious service is taken into consideration. For Thirds, the license is for one child only, with a second child approved only under the most extraordinary circumstances.

Natural Aristocrats may adopt only other Natural Aristocrats. Citizens may adopt a NA child without regard for their license limits. Seconds may adopt Citizen children in lieu of their own. Thirds may adopt Second children in lieu of their own, but each placement is on a case by case basis.

The Free State controls its population the same way they control everything else---with a carrot and a stick. No child in the Free State goes without. The Free State boasts of how well everyone under their control is doing. And they are right. It is care provided for at a staggering price in personal freedom and right of choice. Unlicensed children or children born without the benefit of wedlock are taken from their socially irresponsible parents and raised by the state.