WtHQM:JTF Van Helsing
Part of Welcome to Holy Question Mark, a campaign set in the Amberverse, using modified Lords of Gossamer and Shadow rules.
Contents
Joint Task Force Van Helsing[edit]
JTF Van Helsing is the callsign of the United States Armed Forces Joint Anti-Teratoid Operations Group. The name was selected by the task force's first (and current) commander, Admiral Douglas Raskey.
Composition[edit]
Despite being commanded by a US Navy officer, JTF Van Helsing is a land-based force, with very limited amphibious and naval components. JTF Van Helsing's TOE has evolved over time to comprise mostly US Army motorized infantry and air assault units, with a relatively small artillery component and no organic armor component. Experience showed that armor units were costly and ineffective compared to highly mobile light infantry in the most common operational scenarios faced by JTF Van Helsing. The siege of Terre Haute showed the utility of Stryker and APC units in assaulting prepared enemy positions, and such units may see more deployment with Van Helsing in the future if Terre Haute-type incidents recur.
Doctrine[edit]
JTF Van Helsing operational planning centers on motorized reconnaissance-in-force of suspected teratoid concentrations. The "hive mind" effect reduces the enemy's command-and-control burden, and house-to-house investigation by fire teams with T-test kits is often necessary; if monsters are discovered, soldiers are directed to execute a rapid retrograde (i.e., run away) and return with overwhelming force rather than engaging immediately. This has had a significant morale impact, but the alternative would be constant risk of ambush and defeat in detail.
Admiral Raskey recognized immediately that the Army's doctrine from the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts of leading with Special Operations forces would be disastrous, as any soldiers bitten or stung would become commando troops for the enemy. Van Helsing operational doctrine places a very high value on protecting soldiers from teratoid infection. Units are rotated rapidly from active duty to "recovery phase" and back; during recovery, quarantine, T-testing and panopticon behavioral monitoring ("Big Brother"-style surveillance) are employed to detect infiltrators. The strategy has so far proved effective in preventing mass teratoid outbreaks within the task force, but panopticon monitoring also has a significant morale impact.
An unusually high priority (compared to conventional anti-insurgency operations) is also placed on limiting collateral damage. Admiral Raskey has been taken to task by Congress on more than one occasion for his refusal to use scorched-earth tactics. His most quotable response to such questioning was "This is not Vietnam, Senator; this is America, and I am not going to destroy the country in order to save it." Conspiracy theories that such bravado masks ongoing use of unconventional weapons persist despite a lack of direct evidence.
Due to the executive suspension of the Posse Comitatus Act by President George W. Bush "for the duration of the ongoing emergency," JTF Van Helsing troops have the legal authority to commandeer local police forces as auxiliary troops. In theory, this gives them excellent local intelligence and logistical support. However, by the time the task force is called in, local police forces have often been thoroughly infiltrated, with the "blue line" mentality protecting body snatchers from discovery. JTF Van Helsing's first task in a community is usually to administer mass T-tests to police and other authority figures, often with shocking results.
Other US Anti-Teratoid Forces[edit]
The Department of Homeland Security operates an Anti-Teratoid Support Program to provide local, state and national law enforcement agencies with specialized training and equipment to fight the monsters. It has not been well-received in the law enforcement community due to a perceived attitude problem on the part of DHS agents.
As the nation's primary bulwark against piracy in territorial waters, the United States Coast Guard sees considerable action against the monsters.
Various national intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies are involved in efforts to prevent infiltration of national security assets.
US Military Operations Abroad[edit]
President George W. Bush refused to authorize draw-down of forces in the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters, but his successor President John Kerry withdrew from combat operations abroad within the first 100 days after taking office, citing the urgent need to protect America and its treaty partners against "a threat more insidious and dangerous than any human terrorists." In 2009, Kerry requested that the US Senate pass a resolution ending treaty ties with Europe rather than ratifying the so-called "Monster Codicil" to the North Atlantic Treaty that would have required the US Armed Forces to treat teratoid threats to treaty partners on a par with threats at home. The ensuing international furor and economic crisis are considered to be the largest factors in Kerry's defeat in the 2012 presidential election by John McCain; however, President McCain has so far not responded to NATO entreaties for military assistance against the monsters.
Other Nations' Anti-Teratoid Forces[edit]
Project Unity is the EU's equivalent to JTF Van Helsing and operates with similar tactics.
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