Development Of Japanese Tanks WWII

Near the end of World War I, the IJA showed an interest in armored warfare and tanks and obtained a variety of models from foreign sources. These models included one British Heavy Mk IV and six Medium Mark A Whippets, along with thirteen French Renault FT-17s (later designated Ko-Gata Sensha or "Type A Tank"). The Mk IV was purchased in October 1918 while the Whippets and Renaults were acquired in 1919.^[1]

Trials with these vehicles were successful, and the IJA decided to establish an armored force in 1925, planning to form three light tank battalions and one heavy tank battalion. However, the greatest problem was equipping these units, as the Japanese did not have any indigenous tank production capability. The IJA therefore sent a mission to purchase more tanks from the United Kingdom and France, requesting newer designs. However, the newer tanks were not available as these countries had difficulties supplying them to their own armored forces, and the only available model was the older Renault FT-17. The IJA reluctantly imported these, but in 1929 they were able to acquire ten examples of its successor, the Renault NC1 (designated Otsu-Gata Sensha or "Type B Tank"). Both types of tanks were still in active Japanese service in 1940, and additional vehicles and spare parts were obtained after the Japanese occupation of French Indochina.

The IJA also purchased several Vickers 6-Ton tanks and Carden Loyd tankettes and used these as a basis for further development, resulting in tanks such as the Type 89 Chi-Ro.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_of_Japanese_tanks_in_World_War_II

Imperial Navy of the Sun (Land Forces)

By far the most unique in aspect of all the organizations found within the Empire Of The Sun And Flame is that of the Imperial Navy and it's direct relationship to the imperial family.Add to this relationship or perhaps because of it, the quite large land forces found within a naval organization. Unlike the Daimyo Samurai and Regular Army regiments,the Naval Infantry and Marine regiments are highly trained and professional lead by officers with a blood tie to Imperial family. Also unique is where the Daimyo Samurai and Regular Army regiments use almost no foreign experts, not so the imperial navy they are known to pay well in gold for the best in both technology and military innovation. It is not uncommon to find foreign experts at the naval academy and other training units giving classes in the latest tactics to be found on the planet.Recruitment into the Imperial Navy is almost exclusively from provinces and cities that have been in the possession of the Imperial family for generations, in short these sailors and marines are almost pathologically loyal.

In his memoirs a well noted general of Insula Mucronis,said when facing the blue coated Naval Infantry and Marines " What a hard and costly fight, they are the finest infantry on the planet, thank the gods there are so few of them!"

Imperial Army of the Sun

As with everything regarding the Empire of the Sun and Flame, it is difficult to generalize regarding either the Regular Army regiments or the formations of "samurai" collected by the various daimyos. More or less any collection of figures in whatever arrangement pleases the player can be thrown onto the table.

Samurai Battalion -- Every daimyo raised one battalion of samurai which consisted of between 3 and 7 companies mixed and matched from the following assortment.
Headquarters -- 1xCommand Stand (s2), 1x81mm mortar stand, 2xTrucks OR horses
Mounted -- 1xRifle Stand (mounted)
Motorcycle -- 1xRifle Stand (motorcycle)
Light Tank -- 1-2 Light Tanks
Tank -- 1xMedium or Heavy Tank
Artillery Battery -- 1x75mm howitzer, with truck or limber
Motorized -- 1xRifle Stand, 1xTruck
Anti-tank Battery -- 1x37mm gun, 1xTruck
Machine Gun Battery -- 2xHMG stands, and either 2 trucks, or two wagons. Frequently the HMGs were mounted on the wagons as per WWII Russian practice

Infantry Regiment -- These were better regulated, but poorly led, as aggressive officers drifted to the Samurai formations with better pay and higher social regard. While the Romans found the Imperial infantry tenacious and quite capable at the tactical level, the lack of any permanent formation above the regimental level, appointment of political generals based on loyalty and birth, and the lack of support assets crippled them dramatically.

Headquarters -- 1xCommand Stand (s2)
3-4 Rifle Battalions -- 1xCommand Stand (s1), 3xRifle Stands, 1x60mm mortar, 1xMMG Stand
Mortar Battery -- 1x81mm mortar, 1xTruck
Artillery Battery -- 1xFOO stand (mounted), 1x105mm howitzer, 1x37mm AT gun, 2xTruck
Engineer Company -- 1xEngineer Stand, 1xDump Truck
Scout Company -- 1xRifle Stand (bicycle mounted)

Empire of the Sun and Flame

A mix of Persian and Japanese transplants were the dominant influences in the mix of city states and rural regions ruled by fortress-dwelling robber barons that would be united approximately a century prior to the Great Central War by the Toyahota Family (Motto: "You want it, you got it") in the name of the Divine Shahenshah Artabanus XVI.

Culturally, most of these regions were very similar, having a strict caste system overseen by a hereditary caste, although a merit- and education-based bureaucracy organized on almost Confucian lines provided a means for social mobility for the best of the lower classes. Warfare was stylized and dominated by mounted nobles and their retainers, the mass of the populace being largely unarmed by law and custom, with the exception of certain tenacious hill peoples who provided light-armed infantrymen in lieu of taxes.

Religion is a variation of Zoroastrianism along with a strong ancestor cult and a bushido-like warrior code for the aristocrats.

The Toyahota Shogunate was ushered in with mass armies equipped with rifle-muskets with conical rounds, socket bayonets, and standardized field artillery. However, in order to coopt the various noble houses, after unification the regular infantry was reduced and de-emphasized in favor of the noble muster of horse and the provision for nobles to maintain and command their own infantry regiments or battalions. This system persisted until the beginning of the Great Central War, when its weaknesses were made blatantly obvious by a series of disasters opposing the Swordpoint invasion of the Empire.