[Commentary] Notes + worldbuilding dev for the SocDem military

Something a little bit different from sketches: here's some diagramming I made for developing the SocDem military, which also culminated in that picture of the Soli crew outfits you might have seen recently.

A lot of what I try to do with Light Era is about reconstructing or at least questioning common sci-fi tropes, especially through a postcolonial or progressive lens. Sci-fi military is particularly bothersome for me, if only because it's so stale: some of you know my dislike for the numerous grey box ships named "Hyperion" or somesuch.

I had already decided to model space travel in Light Era off of aviation instead of maritime travel, mostly as I have a love of planes/flight, and I think the aesthetic connotations of beautiful but delicate vehicles is much more appropriate for the Light Era setting. Ranks I needed to figure out though, since I wanted something that reflected the attitudes present in the setting, as well as implications of certain histories of the world.

To that end, I began with learning the basics of military organisational doctrine: the three levels of war, being tactical, operational, and strategic. Separately I also attempted to devise what I called unit "thresholds", such that unit sizes and command responsibilities weren't arbitrary but had actual purpose that aligned with the nature of people. Combining the two I ended up with five major titles: 

• Versors (privates, enlists, NCOs)
• Abettors (lieutenants, frontline officers)
• Majors (backline officers)
• Slators (commanders, operational planning)
• Marshals (generals)

I say "titles" since these only refer to what one might call their "post": the level of responsibility an individual in this organisation is upholding, along with the closest thing to a formalised chain of command. Separate to this is the vocational code system, which is what actually tracks an individual's skill and merit in various competencies (think skill meters in a video game). While being permitted to a certain title often requires some minimum in specific vocations, the two are largely independent.

Currently I'm putting together an infographic showing the rank insignia as well, which I've also taken great effort to try to make its own thing instead of repeating more chevrons and stars. Hopefully I can post about that soon!