Armed Forces

The Armed Forces of the Republic of Hyokoku (Hyojin: Hyokoku kyōwa kokugun), known informally as the "Leopard Forces," are the military forces of Hyokoku. The Armed Forces are comprised of three service branches: the Leopard Army, the Hyojin Navy, and the Hyojin Air Force.

Command Structure and Branches
The Armed Forces are a part of the Ministry of National Defense. The supreme commander of the Armed Forces is the Chancellor of Hyokoku, while the ranking officer holds the title Joint Operational Commander, and is a general or admiral.

The National Defense Commission
The National Defense Commission (NDC) is the highest command body in the Armed Forces. It consists of the Chancellor, Vice Chancellor, Minister for National Defense, the Joint Operational Commander, the Secretary of Defense Intelligence, and the chiefs of staff of each of the military's three service branches.

The Armed Forces Defense Technology Procurement and Development Agency
The Armed Forces Defense Technology Procurement and Development Agency is an agency of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Hyokoku under the Ministry of National Defense. It is responsible for overseeing the development and production of the military's weaponry and equipment in partnership with contracted defense companies.

The Joint Defense Intelligence Agency
The Joint Defense Intelligence Agency (JDIA) is an intelligence and counterintelligence service under the Ministry of National Defense. The JDIA is one of several Hyojin espionage bodies, and it is responsible for gathering intelligence on the capabilities and threat levels posed by foreign militaries. The JDIA works closely with the Strategic Intelligence Agency and Army and Navy Intelligence Bureaus.

History
The modern Hyojin Armed Forces can trace their heritage to the establishment of colonial militias in 17th century Hyokoku. These militias were made up entirely of volunteers, and were mostly privately armed young men who banned together to defend their settlement from Huascan raids. In the First Hyojin-Huascan War, when Chancellor Yamauchi Ihaia declared the formation of a "Grand Army of Hyokoku" consisting of 3,000 men from the local town militias. After their stunning victory at Nahualac, the Hyojin began referring to their soldiers as "Leopard Soldiers" in mockery of the Huascan god of war, which according to legend took the physical form of a Great Northern Leopard when convening with mortals.

The Sacking of Ahmor
The Armed Forces were formally created in 1682 under the Kokkai's "Army Act," which nationalized the country's militias to create a force about 10,000-strong known as the Leopard Army. In 1683, after a season of drilling and preparations, the Leopard Army marched north to attack the Huascan capital of Ahmor. The city's natural defenses, situated in the southern Ryukibas, were formidable, as were its walls. Ahmor was weakened however by rampant diseases, which had decimated the city's population by the late 1680s. Hyojin troops and their indigenous allies laid siege to Ahmor for a week before breaking through the walls and pillaging the capital. An estimated 20,000 Huascans are believed to have been killed during the sacking.

Founding of the War Colleges and Officer Corp
Hyokoku's first War College was founded in Yamakyo in 1702, and trained the first generation of officers in doctrinal strategies surrounding the use of firearms. In the following centuries, Hyokoku would engage in skirmishes with Naholan and Tipetlan native tribes on the country's northern and eastern frontiers, and the tactics and organization of the Leopard Army grew out of necessity. By the 1760s, rangers and cavalry regiments were the army's most effective units. They proved themselves to be versatile and rugged forces when fighting against the guerrilla tactics of the indigenous tribes.

The Navy War College was founded in 1712 after the creation of the Hyojin Navy itself. It remained a much smaller academy than it's army counterpart, in part due to Hyokoku's disinterest in attempting to expand into the Dunic Ocean's island chains. The navy became more important in the 1890s, however, when warming relations with Sakaro led Hyokoku to involve itself in anti-piracy campaigns. The rise of a globalized trade work was also a driving factor for the Hyojin, who sought to create a naval force powerful enough to project and protect their influence near the Hyojin coastline.

Machok's Rebellion
The revolt of the Tipetlan chief Machok and his tribe in 1878 was a decisive moment in the history of the Hyojin armed forces, and one that radically changed the way the country's military leaders ideas around national security. The rebellion emphasized the importance of maintaining a strong standing army and suppressing indigenous radicalism, and led the military to view the native people, rather than any foreign power, as the greatest threat to Hyokoku's sovereignty.

At the battles of Mount Shoho and Broken Wing, Machok cleverly used stolen rifles and ambush tactics to massacre 1,500 Hyojin troops. The two engagements remain the Hyokoku's greatest defeats of all time, and came as a startling shock to the public and government leadership. As terror spread across the country that the revolt would grow into a nationwide uprising, the moved to reorganize and expand. Hyokoku's political leadership, meanwhile exploited rivalries among the different tribes to gather intelligence of Machok's forces. These efforts allowed them to defeat him at the Battle of Katsuso Pass, ushering in a new era of peace.