New California Rangers

Overview
The New California Rangers are an elite military outfit of the New California Republic. The Rangers are a volunteer special force renowned as much for their expert reconnaissance capabilities as their bravery and combat prowess. Due to the physical demands of Ranger testing and training, most were previously members of other special forces such as the first Recon despite their volunteer status.

Their primary purpose is dealing with threats regular forces can't handle, as well as keeping the borders of the NCR secure, hunting errant dragons, scouting out threats and other special assignments. Their superior training, superior weaponry and assortment of antediluvian technology and post-dragon magic allows them to tip battles in NCR's favor even when a situation may see them outnumbered and outgunned.

History
The Rangers were founded by Seth in the early years of the New California Republic, eventually becoming an independent corp of dragon hunters focusing on killing or driving out the dragons remaining in the republic and securing it's borderlands.

Their limited numbers made their mission difficult, as they were routinely out-matched by their foes. As such, the Rangers operated in secret, especially outside NCR territories. It wasn't until their defeat of Uzzontoat, The Scourge of the West that they were recognized by the Republic and granted their first airship. Using the money given to them they also began training adepts in magic and enchantment at Yoosi University, eventually leading to the current system of Featherfall Cloaks for tactical insertion and Minor Sending Stones for communication (see equipment & tatics). It's commonly believed that the clarity of purpose and a clear moral compass, helped them beat seemingly impossible odds and prevail.

Due to the rare Chromatic Dragon ability to change shape into that of beasts and men, operational security implemented by the Rangers made their cells and safehouses impossible to detect, short of direct infiltration. Even their headquarters were secret, hidden in plain sight as a former auto shop. Codes were set up to verify identification and protocols for long range communication were implemented.

In the end, their perseverance proved essential to helping the growing republic and its still-young army survive in a wasteland full of despots, raiders, and monsters. The Rangers steadily helped tip the balance in favor of the republic, which stood for freedom and democracy. Their Dragon slaying evolved into a fundamental dedication to protecting the people of the wasteland against all forms of tyranny and chaos.

Their work took on a new shape in 2613, when the elder Chief Elise signed the Ranger Unification Treaty, integrating the Desert Rangers into the NCR Rangers and dedicating the Rangers to protecting Hoover Dam, New Vegas and southern Nevada against the forces of the Legion, which proved impossible for the Desert Rangers to defeat on their own.

For the next ten years, the Rangers' duties slowly transformed into a permanent vigil, looking east and watching the borders against tyrants like the Legion. Rangers patrolled both sides of the great Colorado River, trying to fight an enemy who refused to fight fair and routinely used children and ambushes to fight the Rangers. Many were wounded and forced to leave the Rangers, incapable of continuing their patrols. The few who recovered could count on priority assignments to elite units of the Army, always in need of capable soldiers.

Celebrated as heros, The Rangers act as bodyguards for President Joshua Norton and maintain a network of Ranger outposts across the country and the gateway to the Republic, Mojave Outpost. While patrol Rangers hold the line in the Mojave and other frontiers, quick response teams are ready to defend citizens against surprise internal attacks such as Dragons and other monsters.

By 2666, they represent the elite of the NCR and are often given dangerous or prestigious tasks, such as forming the elite bodyguard of the President of the republic, Joshua Norton. However, according to Chief Hanlon, a Ranger's life boils down to the phrases "looking east and above", tools to be used for the territorial expansion of the republic. Regardless, a Ranger failing in their objective is a rare sight and their success is often taken for granted

They operate from six Ranger stations across the Republic: Ranger station Alpha, Bravo, Charlie, Delta, Echo and Foxtrot. These stations are tasked with patrolling the NCR's territory and recieving distress calls, passing them along to the airship bound Rangers.

Organization
What started as an independent outfit dedicated to uprooting and slaying Dragons evolved over the years into a distinct organization with the characteristics of civilian survey companies, special forces, and law enforcement: Part scout, part commando, part sheriff. Although once autonomous, by 2666, the Rangers were folded into the NCR's military chain of command, operating under army officers in any major engagements or ongoing operations of strategic locations. However, Rangers are given leeway in terms of carrying out their duties, blurring the line between an independent agency and army special forces.

The Rangers are not numerous. In the Mojave Wasteland, the total number of Rangers across the region does not exceed a couple hundred, concentrated in Ranger stations and their airships.

They are organized into Ranger battalions, which are in turn divided into companies and those into platoons and then squads. There are at least four Ranger battalions in existence, and their companies can be named after animals (eg. Owlbear company.) One of the most elite Ranger squads is the Alpha Squad. A NCR Ranger hit squad also exists in the Mojave in 2666, ready to "do terrible things to terrible people" if ordered by NCR leadership.

Rangers frequently serve a lifetime, until they are incapacitated, killed or retire. Veterans who served 20 years do not receive medals or watches, but rather the traditional Ranger Sequoia, a ceremonial (but still very functional) magic crossbow.

Like troopers of the army, Rangers receive compensation for their work in the field. Payment is also incentive-based, and the discovery of important intel can lead to a salary raise.

Recruitment
They are fully volunteer-only group; no persons are conscripted into the Rangers. Instead, the Rangers proactively recruit members, most commonly from among the soldiers of New California Republic Army who demonstrated excellence at fighting and/or scouting, though prospective Rangers are free to refuse the offer. As long as the candidate demonstrates the requisite skills, the Rangers are equal opportunity employers, hiring orcs and Goblinkind on an equal basis.

All candidates are expected to undergo rigorous training. 8 out of 10 drop out due to the extreme standards. Those that finish and are awarded the badge have proven that they are "quieter than a shadow and more ferocious than even a Gnoll."

Ranks
The Rangers are a close-knit outfit, with a great deal of emphasis placed on respecting the wisdom of their veterans and elders. The greatest of these in 2281 is Chief Hanlon, who is the object of near-reverence by his fellow Rangers. The Rangers do not generally use the NCR Army's standard military rank structure. Their known ranks are:
 * Ranger recruit
 * Ranger
 * Veteran Ranger
 * Chief (only the top Ranger holds this rank)

Equipment & Tatics
The distinctive black ranger combat armor consists of the Desert Rangers' traditional Featherfall trench cloak worn with armor and a Helm of Adaptation (reskinned Necklace of Adaptation). Ranger patrol armor is hand-manufactured in the NCR directly by the Gnomes. State-of-the-art airships are designed by gnomes and built in San Francisco at one of the few airshipyards in existence.

Arguably one of the most important pieces of equipment belonging to the rangers is their Minor Sending Stones, affectionately called Rockie Talkies. Conceptualized in 2635 in response to a particularly vicious dragon attack, they were created by a Ranger Adept. Consisting of a pair of Sending Stones that are limited to one use per day, one from each pair is given to the mayors of most towns and captains of each airships, while the other is placed in a room within a Ranger Outpost, manned by a operator. When under attack by major forces (Dragons, enemy armies, other monsters) and using their best judgement, the mayor would send a distress signal through their sending stone with as much information as possible to the Operator, who would then pass on the information to the nearest airship to respond. While not a perfect system, the Rangers ability to catch dragons has significantly increased.

Once responding, a recon team is sent out to quickly gather Intel and decide the best drop zone. Once that has been communicated by a variety of means (more sending stones, Flaregems, signals, etc) the Rangers begin their drop sequence. Drop sequences have some variance but they all have common features;
 * A pre-breathing period prior to the jump (due to thin air)
 * Between 12,500 ft and 28,000 ft
 * Quick, synchronized jumps
 * Rangers "stack"￼ to stay together
 * Deploying Featherfall Cloaks within 3 seconds (If HAHO)
 * Deploying Featherfall Cloaks as late as possible (if HALO)

By 2666, the Rangers have firmly established themselves as the elite military branch of the republic. As such, they have access to the finest armor and weapons the republic can muster. Their regular Ranger patrol armor is hand-made in the NCR and offers good, balanced protection in combat and from the hardships of the desert, while the elite black armor uses advanc gnomishot arm designsor combined with the traditional Desert Ranger duster. Ranger combat helmets are also Gnomish-in-design militaryry gear that has built in low-light optics, allowing for more advance night scouting and HALO drops. Rangerer armories are also significantly better than that of regular troops and sometimes including magical weapons.

While the level of technology employed by the Rangers is quite impressive by the standards of the times, it is still far behind the state-of-art equipment utilized by the Gnomish Brotherhood of Steel. Nevertheless, it is a testament to resources of the New California Republic that the Rangers are able to be so uniformly well-equipped, and even a Ranger on non-combat duties will easily defeat a group of Legionaries.