Drill Instructor Zinka Tan's page

Finally, the training is over. After one more exhausting day of workouts, Drill Instructor Tan stands before the assembled recruits as the sun sets over Camp Cavalier, bathing the snow-covered training grounds in a chilled orange twilight.

"You might feel invincible after trainin', but this is real life now, and it ain't nothin' like your precious little simulations. Ain't no test scores here, and ain't no do-overs. If those monsters bring you down, chances are you won't be gettin' back up. They might look like nothing more than big bugs - Hells, they might even act like it - but they're not. No way. No more'n I am. They might not be smarter than you, or faster than you, or even stronger than you, but by Hylax, they are meaner than you! Don't think twice about killin' 'em. You can bet your nethers they're not thinkin' twice about killin' you."

At the end of what, for him, passes as a rousing inspirational speech, he begins calling off names for unit assignments. Most are assigned to forward combat units, and a few to support commands. One poor shirren, missing one antenna and most of an arm, is sent off to the kitchen.

Only four are left unassigned. Tan waits until the last few stragglers are out of earshot before addressing them,

"Zarrex, Kita, Enoot, Kelkikt. Y'all four showed some mighty good promise out here. So much you attracted the attention of the big lizard himself. Major Jaldamarrak has requested your presence in his ready room at 1830 hours. I know you'll do me proud out there. Go squash some bugs, Privates. Dismissed!"

With a stiff salute, Instructor Tan releases you to move on.

You only have about 10 minutes to get to the Major's ready room, so you're going to have to walk straight there. You can give me a Culture check to recall knowledge about Major Jaldamarrak.
Let me know if you have appropriate theme knowledge.

Drill Instructor Tan pushes the recruits hard, testing their limits over and over. The days are filled with grueling runs and exercises, the evenings with classes on tactics, equipment, and melee combat. Some recruits learn to sleep standing up. It is clear that some of the recruits do not pass even the most basic tasks, but no one is expelled. The need for soldiers to replenish the Fifth Battalion is too great.

These four recruits are assigned to the same bunk unit in the corner of the barracks. They swap stories from home, commiserate over the harsh drills and weather, and discuss the latest scuttlebutt from around camp. The mood around camp is grim, though glimmers of hope have begun to shine through at the news of the Swarm’s seeming slowdown. The SDF and Suskillon as a whole have paid a terrible price over the last 6 months. Every credit expended, each drop of sweat, and all the bloodshed has been part of a worldwide attempt to repel the alien invaders.

Kita is a quick one to make friends among the class, and she's heard a number of interesting rumors.

Enoot’s presence becomes a recurring joke during the physical exercises. Though no one doubts his technical aptitude and tactical skills, his small form leaves much to be desired during hand-to-hand combat. No one is willing to wrestle with Littlefoot.

Kelkikt, however, is something of a sensation during sparring matches. His skill with the pick is unmatched among the recruits. He quickly makes friends with some of the bulkier humans, who may or may not be addicted to stim packs.

Zarrex returns to fighting form rather quickly, settling into the strangely familiar routine of boot camp. He is promoted to class primarch, meaning he is usually the first to be punished if someone forgets to make their bed. Zarrex's visit to the chaplain does not go very well, for the human chaplain is a devotee of Pharasma, and his reception to the Varculak is about as warm as one would expect. Still, the chaplain performs his duty. Zarrex’s visitation is short, formal, and mainly consists of a rote recitation of a prayer to Hylax for Zarrex; followed by a much more passionate prayer to Pharasma pleading for care for Zarrex's lost brother.

I sent the rumors you’ve heard in a DM, you can share them in character. Basic training is almost over!

What follows is two weeks of grueling, exhausting training. There are midnight runs, early morning PT, small arms and rifle teardown and repair. A few recruits can barely keep up, but no one drops out. They know the SDF needs them. And so they keep going, for their chance to take the fight to the Swarm.

We are now in a full-blown 80s training montage. Give me one each of: Acrobatics, Athletics, Engineering (can make it untrained), Survival, two ranged attacks, and two melee attacks (unarmed).

You’re free to talk to each other and make Diplomacy or Profession (Soldier) checks to talk to other recruits or enlisted you run into in mess hall or in the barracks. Maybe you’ll learn something about the war effort or about the Swarm from those who have already fought them.

As the recruits stop to catch their breath at the base of a large platform overlooking a field filled with mud pits, ropes, and logs, Corporal Lissa appears completely unfazed. Each inhale feels like ice growing in the lungs, yet she calmly speaks to a dark-skinned human Specialist. Soon she leaves without a word. Not nearly enough time to recover from the long jog passes before he shouts commandingly, in a deep clear voice, compelling everyone in earshot to pay attention:

”Listen here, idiots, because I’m only going to say this once. I am SDF Drill Instructor Zinka Tan. You will address me as Drill Instructor Tan, Sir, and only as Drill Instructor Tan, Sir. That is the first lesson. Do not make me teach it again.”

He begins walking down the line, eyeing the recruits with disdain.

”I do not care ‘bout you. You ain’t soldiers. Hell, most of you are not cut out for war, yet here you are. I don’t care which backwater planethole you crawled out of or what ya’ daddy did in the Pact Worlds Navy. I do not care if you were promised honor, money, or cloaca when ya signed up. But I do care about winning this here war. I’ve been tasked with training you on how to point and shoot your guns in the general direction of those damn bugs, and not at yourself or your comrades. I will teach you how to follow directions, how to survive in this godsforsaken winter, and how to cook the finest hardtack the Suskillon Defense Force has e’er requisitioned. These are easy lessons, and you will learn them. If you ain’t feeling like learning, well then, you will die. My one and only job is to make the number of imbeciles and morons in the SDF as small as possible. So for the next fourteen days, y'all belong to me. Now drop your gear and start running that course.”