UNSC Branches of Service

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UNSC Administrative Division

"Years ago, I told my father it was 'just dirt.' But it's not just dirt. It's where we live. It's our dirt, dammit. And more importantly, it's about who's standing on that dirt. Those children. Your family. Your friends."

Also referred to as UNSC High Command, abbreviated HIGHCOM by some, the Administrative Division is the highest operational command of the UNSC. It, ultimately, controls all resources, from personnel to facilities, in use by the UNSCDF. Two technical divisions of HIGHCOM exist: the United Ground Command, and the UNSC Naval Command. The former controls all ground-based units currently in service with the UNSCDF; the latter, all UNSC Navy units. Regional CENTCOMs, Central Commands, are the vehicles through which the Administrative Division attends to matters on a regional level.

With headquarters at Earth and Foundation, HIGHCOM is composed of many of the highest-ranking officers from all branches of the military, and has directed UNSC strategy, from combating insurrectionist groups to alien threats such as the Covenant, since its creation. When Reach fell during the Human-Covenant War, HIGHCOM was originally moved back to Earth. Since then, it has maintained that headquarters and adopted a secondary one: Foundation, the Reach of the second wave of human colonies.

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UNSC MEDCORPS

The United Nations Space Command Medical Corps is a branch of HIGHCOM responsible for medical care. The MEDCORPS administers such treatments as drugs and surgeries as authorized by the UNSC; these men and women are the corpsmen and medics responsible for getting personnel the necessary medical attention to get them back into action.

The MEDCORPS, or at the very least the higher-ups, is also responsible for determining which drugs are legal and which are not. They were, for example, responsible for making brain mutagens illegal.

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UNSC Marine Corps

"They're the best of the best, but they're only human."

The UNSC Marine Corps is a branch of the UNSCDF responsible for land-based military operations. In addition to this, the Marines are charged with the duty of protection Naval ships and installations from attack. A durable and diverse array of equipment and individuals, the Marines are probably best known for fighting a losing war against the vastly superior Covenant.

The Marines were the first military organization deployed offworld, in 2163; their first action saw them waging war in the Interplanetary War, before the formation of the UNSC. Since then, the Marines have played a crucial role in holding together humanity, though of course even they needed help from the other branches of the military. Since the end of the Human-Covenant War, the Marines have established a solid presence on the human colonies, maintaining peace and simultaneously remaining vigilant for another threat.

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UNSC Navy

The Navy is the branch of the UNSCDF primarily responsible for naval operations. Though the Navy still operates in the oceans, its primary role is the conduction of naval operations in space. Such roles include orbital bombardment, the deployment of Marines into battle, and, perhaps most importantly, ship-to-ship combat.

The Navy was first created as a direct result of the need to oversee and monitor Marine deployments and operations from space, in 2163. A direct descendant of the UN Navy, the UNSC Navy is led by UNSC Naval Command. The UNSC has a large fleet of warships, from huge cruisers capable of carrying thousands to fighters capable of carrying one. The Navy has jurisdiction over the vast majority of these, generally deploying them in offensive operations, against the Covenant or various insurrectionist forces, or in defensive operations, generally to protect a human-controlled planet.

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UNSC Army

The UNSC Army is another branch of the UNSCDF, responsible for the conducting of ground-based military operations. One such operation was the Fall of Reach, where Army units supported SPARTAN units in defending the planet; another was the Battle of Earth, where at least one Army unit attempted to support the Marines in New Mombasa and was promptly annihilated.

The Army's role is primarily a defensive one, such as garrisoning a planet or patrolling border colonies, whereas the Marines are more commonly deployed in an offensive manner.

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UNSC Air Force

The UNSC Air Force is a ground-based division of the UNSCDF, similar to the Army. However, the Air Force is responsible for aerial operations, often providing air support or transportation to the Army. The Air Force makes use of such platforms as the F-99 Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle, SkyHawk fighter, Shortsword bomber, and from time to time its larger cousin the Longsword.

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UNSC SPARTAN Program

"You have been called upon to serve, you will be trained... and you will become the best we can make of you. You will be the protectors of Earth and all her colonies..."

The SPARTAN program is first and foremost an attempt to produce elite soldiers with both mechanical and biological augmentations. These soldiers are selected from the genetic cream of the crop, then taken at the age of six for comprehensive training and education. Approximately eight years later, the SPARTANs in question are biologically and mechanically augmented, subject to a number of medical processes that forge them into something far more than human.

Some effects include greatly increased strength and speed, lightning-fast reflexes, virtually perfect night vision, and nearly unbreakable bones. Combined with the MJOLNIR armor platform, the SPARTAN platform transforms children into seven-foot-tall walking tanks in a matter of years. These soldiers are highly skilled and thoroughly protected by their armor, regarded as heroes by the rank and file.

This hero status has awarded SPARTANs the honor of never truly dying; as opposed to being labeled KIA when legitimately killed in action, something which would potentially create a massive morale drop, SPARTANs are labeled missing in action, MIA. Such a protocol presumably only helped spread myths about the power of SPARTANs, though truly even one is a force to be reckoned with.

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UNSC SPEC OPS

The UNSC Special Forces compose the special warfare branch of the UNSC. Units generally considered to belong to the Special Forces include the SPARTAN Program graduates, under the command of the Office of Naval Intelligence, Section Three; these are perhaps the best-known of operators, given their capacity for mayhem as super-soldiers.

ODSTs also technically fall into the category of Special Forces. They often make orbital insertion aboard SOEIVs and perform some of the most difficult tasks in hostile areas, such as softening up an area for further assault by Marines or simply clearing an area of enemies.

ONI, Section Three controls quite a few Special Forces units; many of these are Spartans, but when they feel the need, ONI has been known to take command of ODSTs or even Marines to get a job done.