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 by Gerald Harris
©1999, 2005, 2007 Æther Traveller

Soldier’s Companion gives detailed descriptions of various Martian war bands already rated for that game. Because of the scale of the miniature battlefield, these war bands, like their European counterparts, are represented by considerably smaller numbers of figures than would appear in the actual unit.

So, just how big was a late 19^th century Martian war band? Interestingly, clues to this puzzle appear all throughout the published literature.

In both Soldier’s Companion and Conklin’s Atlas of the Worlds, sequences to design Martian cities appear. Under "Quality of the Army," mention is made of 60-man bands, and under "Size of the Army," the modified population roll gives the number of bands in the army (two infantry, one cavalry, and two guns). Interestingly enough, 60 men is roughly the size of a European company (Space 1889, pg. 31).

We also know that under the Soldier’s Companion rules, regiments contain only half the companies that would normally be found in a standard order of battle. Soldier’s Companion British regiments contain four companies, while their historical counterparts contained eight (Space 1889, pg. 31). If this holds true for Martian war bands, then all generated war bands actually represent two war bands, each of 60 men. Therefore, each army size number represents four bands of infantry and two bands of cavalry, or about 360 actual troops.

In regards to artillery, Soldier’s Companion says that each army size number indicates two guns. In the "Unit Organization" section (pg. 28), each gun represents one gun section, and three gun sections equal one battery (company). Historically, each gun section represented two guns, with each battery representing about six guns. So in the case of Martian artillery, each army size number indicates four guns.

For the actual organization of the war band, we’ll use Soldier’s Companion directly. Each Martian war band is organized like an irregular unit, with three officers and the remainder being troops. We are also told that while there are NCO equivalents in Martian armies, they do not have the same responsibilities as do NCOs in terrestrial armies. If we take the Oenotrian Army organization as representative of all Martian armies (it’s not, I know, but the example will do), then we know that the Martian war band is divided into two half-companies. With three officers, this indicates that each half-company is commanded by a Bannerman (lieutenant) and the company is commanded by a First Sword (Captain) or Swordmaster (Major). This would indicate the actual paper strength of a Martian company to be 61 troops (two half companies of one officer and 29 men, plus the company’s commanding officer).

Legion Victorious
Using the information above, we can now determine the historical makeup of a Martian unit, in this case the Oenetrian 1^st Legion, "Victorious."

Victorious is listed as having four companies, which historically represented eight companies, or approximately 480 troops. In addition, the legion has two bands of mercenary infantry and two bands of mercenary cavalry attached, for an additional 480 troops. The legion also has two light guns and four heavy guns attached for a grand total of 960 legionnaires and 6 artillery pieces, a rather respectable force, especially when one considers that these are elite troops.