Astro Police Rangers
Federation Astro Police Rangers
are the representatives of law enforcement responsible for, per capita, over 500 cubic light years of space. They usually work alone or in small
groups. They spend months at a time away from home. They must be independent and interdependent at the same time. Some of them come from the industrialized and civilized Core Worlds, others come from the Rim
Worlds that were the first to be colonized, others might come from the Frontier colonies and serve the planet they grew up on.
Each Ranger is their own commanding officer. All Rangers are equal. Their job, simply, is to uphold the law on the Frontier. The Frontier is a region of space
spanning 150 million cubic light years. That means there are, on average, 300,000 Astro Police Rangers are on patrol at any given time. The Rangers are a brotherhood, a sisterhood, a fraternity, and a sorority all in one. If one
Ranger is in need, they can call for help, no questions asked. Likewise, if a Ranger fails the family, great retribution awaits. Rangers police themselves and, failing that, the Federation Starforce has authorization to deal
with renegades.
The Frontier is a dangerous place. Each year, the Astro Police Rangers suffer a 34% turnover, either through death, injury, retirement, or disappearance. Out there one will find bandits, planetary warlords, pirates, incursions by
Imperial Shock Troops, and even hostile aliens. None of which share a healthy respect for authority or the law. As a result, the average career life span of a typical Federation Astro Police Ranger is 3 to 5 years, though perhaps 15% last 20 years or more. If a Ranger survives the first 3 years, their chances of surviving even more are very high.
At first glance, Astro Police Ranger recruitment seems fairly lenient. The Law must be enforced, and the Galaxy needs people to do it. Recruits are given tough training and are told what is expected of them and what the consequences of failure are. That is usually sufficient. Astro Police Rangers are not alone, however. Astro Police Support supplies and equips the Rangers, keeps track of them, and handles communications and deployment.
They determine who goes where and what needs to be done, then make sure a Ranger is able to do it. There are Astro Police Support stations on nearly every colonized planet on the Frontier. They also determine if a Ranger is
a renegade or not, so they are treated with proper respect among the Rangers. Secondly, there are other Rangers. If a Astro Police ever needs help, Astro Police Support can have Rangers at their position in a matter of hours. Each Ranger is expected to be able to lay down their life in the
support and protection of another Ranger. But Ranger deployment isn't unlimited, and it may take days to get together more than 10 Rangers, and getting more than 200 Rangers at any given time is unlikely. Space is just
too big and the Astro Police is usually very busy.
Astro Police Rangers are equipped with the latest technology and gear. They pilot long-range Space Fighters called Peacekeepers. Rangers tend to develop
strong emotional attachments to their Peacekeepers, whose AI units keep Rangers company on long lonely missions. Rangers receive an allowance to modify their fighters to meet their personal specifications. Rangers
receive a uniform, a side-arm, a flight-suit, and some other basic equipment. On top of that, Rangers are given an equipment allowance to outfit themselves to their own personal needs. Astro Police Support Stations have large armories at their disposal, but they're not unlimited. If a Ranger needs a powersuit, they can requisition it. If they need a bigger ship for a short mission, they can requisition that as well. Heavy Armor, Weapons, Engineering
Equipment, and other items are all available from Astro Police Support. Astro Police Support offers loans on equipment allowances for big items, but failure to pay will result in garnishing of the Ranger’s wages.
Recruitment and Training
Federation Astro Police Rangers are drawn from all walks of life. Ranger recruitment is handled by Astro Police Support. They focus on military personnel looking for a job after the service, planetary law enforcement officers looking for a promotion, graduating college students looking for adventure, and even prisons where ex-cons are given a chance to start a new life upholding the law.
Most Rangers come from low-income social groups and often carry checkered pasts. Upon joining the Rangers, any past transgressions are erased from the record.
Astro Police Ranger training consists of two-months of basic training at any one of the hundreds of Astro Police Training facilities. The training is rigorous but not gruelling.
In addition to physical training, Ranger Recruits receive 80 hours of classroom training in law enforcement and basic sciences. Rangers also receive training in flight procedures for both the Peacekeeper Starfighter and
basic transport shuttles.
Upon completion of basic training, Rangers are barely ready to carry out their duties. Accordingly, for the first 10 months of active duty, Ranger Recruits are assigned to a Senior Astro Police Ranger as a Trainee. It is the Senior
Ranger’s duty to indoctrinate the Trainee and show them around, giving the Trainee a taste of the work to come.
During this time, Trainees are considered full and equal Rangers, though some minor hazing does occur. Upon completion of their training period, Ranger Trainees are assigned their first “solo” missions.
Duties
The Astro Police are expected to enforce the law of the Federation Constitution. If an Astro Police Officer or Ranger sees a crime in progress, they are expected to stop the crime, apprehend the perpetrators, and return the perpetrators to either the closest local Law Enforcement Authorities or to an Astro Police Support Base, whichever is closer or more convenient.
An Astro Police Ranger must always yield jurisdiction to local Law Enforcement Authorities except in cases of suspected corruption. In which case, a charge of corruption must be filed and investigated, and should the
case be unfounded, the perpetrator will be extradited to the Law Enforcement Authorities.
More often than not, local Law Enforcement Authorities will yield jurisdiction to the Astro Police as their own resources are typically below par. In fact, most Astro Police investigations or interventions are requested by local Law Enforcement Authorities.
Resources
Individual Astro Police Rangers are issued an protective flight suit, a side-arm, a datapad, and a tape-cuff dispenser. Rangers are given an equipment allowance to outfit themselves to their satisfaction and requirements.
Rangers are also assigned a Peacekeeper long-range Starfighter and an additional allowance to outfit it to their personal requirements.
Available upon request from all Astro Police Support Bases are Heavy Weapons, Demolitions, Engineering Equipment, Transport Shuttles, Powersuits, and even Starships. Assignment is usually on a permission
basis.
Pay
Rangers are paid a stipend of 500 credits a month and a monthly equipment maintenance allowance of 100 credits a month as base pay. Successful completion of missions also provide bonuses of 1000 to 10000 credits depending on the importance and/or difficulty of the mission.
Astro Police Support Bases
There are thousands of Astro Police Support Bases located throughout the Frontier. Bases run the gamut of planetary installations, hollowed out asteroids, freefloating space stations, or even mobile starships. All Support Bases have hangar facilities for a minimum of 10 Peacekeepers or Polaris Transport Shuttles. Each base has short-term detention facilities for a minimum of 1000 prisoners. Bases also have sleeping and recreation
facilities for a minimum of 100 Rangers. Base equipment supplies vary, but generally store several impounded starships, 10 to 20 Powersuits, and 10 to
20 Vehicles of various varieties.
Bases serve as temporary homes for the often transient Rangers. Bases are a place where Astro Police Rangers can refuel, re-supply, re-equip, drop off prisoners, make repairs, catch some sleep, and relax between missions.
