NationStates Jolt Archive

Quick question seeing as how I want to keep any future RP as realistic as possible. I've calculated the military budget based on the costs of brand new weapons (Using Portland Iron works as a potential model) completely outfitting 500,000 soldiers with assault rifles with 2 heavy weapons Squads (anti-Tank) per Battalion (GDF Battalion=1,000, Squad=10) and basic survival gear as well as a radio (a cheap one) each. But can a country of just over 7 million sustain a 1/2 million man Army? (The only armor I could afford even adding the yearly surplus was 30 mobile SAM platforms.) I know a more Balanced force is better but Id rather get the infantry up to date first just cause I'm a horrible multitasker. Also I'm not applying the training costs because the first year of receiving entirely new Weapons would tie things up in logistics and instructing trainers to train the trainers to train the troops.

500,000 out of 7,000,000 is a little over 7% of your population. It might be appropriate when your population is about 25 million, but for now it's a little excessive; 100,000 - 150,000 is more reasonable.

You might want a heavy weapons platoon or company for your battalion, rather than two squads. Most of your anti-armour activity would be done with rocket artillery and high-velocity submunitions, or IFV's with anti-armour missiles, but heavy weapons units can go in areas where rocket artillery or heavy vehicles can't easily go.

Additionally governments get weapons and ammo at volume discounts to say the least and usually a lot more than that! Cutting your projected expenses by about half would not be out of line. AK 47's are plentiful, less expensive, dependable and even press ganged, underfed, child soldiers in Africa learn to use them with minimal training ( sad to say)

Additionally governments get weapons and ammo at volume discounts to say the least and usually a lot more than that! Cutting your projected expenses by about half would not be out of line. AK 47's are plentiful, less expensive, dependable and even press ganged, underfed, child soldiers in Africa learn to use them with minimal training ( sad to say)

[ Press-ganged and underfed child soldiers in Africa can also just as easily use an M-16 or an FN FAL.

<_<

At 500,000 soldiers, total (note: including reserves and paramilitary), a nation with 25mn people will have, for every 1,000 citizens, 20 soldiers. That means you'll want a conscript military framework (for comparison's sake, the US has 10 soldiers per every 1,000 citizens; Iran, on the other hand, has 181.5 soldiers per citizens). Other NATO nations hover around 8-15 soldiers per 1,000 citizens.

The quality of your soldiers depends on how much you're willing to spend on each, which means if you pour $50,000 in to every guy, your soldiers will be very professional, but you might go bankrupt if your economy can't support it (and if you're asking, I don't think you can).

My final answer? Yes, but they'll have all the problems of a military that's motivated by law rather than by personal reasons. ]

You might want a heavy weapons platoon or company for your battalion, rather than two squads. Most of your anti-armour activity would be done with rocket artillery and high-velocity submunitions, or IFV's with anti-armour missiles, but heavy weapons units can go in areas where rocket artillery or heavy vehicles can't easily go.

Yeah I'd love to have a heavy weapons squad per platoon as my favored tactics (in my mind) would be small fast and light rather than armor heavy. (IFVs would be great and maybe some tank-destroyer's (small light fast tanks with fire on the move capability and heavy guns).

Additionally governments get weapons and ammo at volume discounts to say the least and usually a lot more than that! Cutting your projected expenses by about half would not be out of line. AK 47's are plentiful, less expensive, dependable and even press ganged, underfed, child soldiers in Africa learn to use them with minimal training ( sad to say)

Id love to cut expenses in half, but I think Portland built the bulk value into the price, 1,200 dollars is cheaper than many a civilian shotgun. Ammo I calculated rather cheap as well.

At 500,000 soldiers, total (note: including reserves and paramilitary), a nation with 25mn people will have, for every 1,000 citizens, 20 soldiers. That means you'll want a conscript military framework (for comparison's sake, the US has 10 soldiers per every 1,000 citizens; Iran, on the other hand, has 181.5 soldiers per citizens). Other NATO nations hover around 8-15 soldiers per 1,000 citizens.

200,000 then, which leaves room for IFVs and light armor as it cuts expenses in half (slightly more than half but meh). 10 million people now, which means about 1/50th of the population are soldiers.

Also remember you can shop around. Some storefronts have items at pretty good prices Grierson. Its an accepted rule that your nation has anything that exists in real life at its disposal as well.

Bear in mind that, within a week, you'll have doubled your nation's size.

Getting a patron can be useful as well.

*Does his best ignorant Aborigines look.*

Whats a patron?

Also remember you can shop around. Some storefronts have items at pretty good prices Grierson. Its an accepted rule that your nation has anything that exists in real life at its disposal as well.

Yeah, I know, Portland just seemed to be a pretty good example. Its not as if Im actually purchasing anything yet, that comes when Im sure that I have some idea of what Im doing.

*Does his best ignorant Aborigines look.*

Whats a patron?

I've never heard the phrase before (I've always heard it in much longer terms), but it essentially means 'snuggle up to a major II power' or 'join an alliance'. Or both, really.