Although all natives within Neuschwabenland und Hohlwelt are subject to the Kaiser, only pure ethnic Germans or half-breeds with at least one parent born in the Outer World are permitted to join the Imperial military proper. Any others equipped for military operations are formed into native auxiliaries. These units are organized, equipped, and trained according to standards set out by the colonial government rather than the army. In practice, almost all auxiliaries are ground units, though naval (mostly riverine) and airborne units have been experimented with in recent years.

Gilak Auxiliaries

The most abundant auxiliaries are Inner World humans, the Gilaks. For the most part, the German army considers the Gilaks too stupid, lazy, and ill-disciplined for modern combined arms operations, and so they are generally utilized for raiding duties or as corvee labor to support the regular army in the field. However, the Gilaks do have certain innate advantages over surface humans that cannot be overlooked. For starters, Gilaks require much less sleep and possess a significantly superior stamina (at least in the Pellucidarian environs) than surface worlders. Even more importantly, they possess an innate attunement to the unusual geomagnetic fields of the Inner World, granting them an instinctive navigational sense similar to a homing pigeon. Since Pellucidar’s lack of stars and its perpetual noon-day sun thwart traditional human techniques of orienteering, Gilaks almost always accompany German officers as guides and scouts. Unfortunately, few half-breeds maintain this ability, so this remains the domain of the full-blooded Gilak.

Horib Auxiliaries

The reptilian Horibs, though far fewer in number, are considered a far more important part of the native auxiliary force. It may be fairly said that there is something in their remorseless, warlike nature that is of a kind with that of the German.

In their campaign to pacify the non-human civilizations that threatened their subjects, the Germans often took advantage of tribal feuds among the brutal lizardmen tribes, recruiting outcast and outlaw Horibs, in the manner of the American Indian Scouts, to act as frontier police and special forces. Even more vicious than the usual Horib, these were employed as a suppression force, roaming far afield with the aid of their superior bushcraft, reconnoitering ground and sowing terror among rebellious Gilaks and the non-human races alike.

modeling

In terms of modeling the forces, the Horibs can be represented by any sort of appropriately scaled ‘lizardman’ model, provided they can be modeled with rifles, grenades, and so forth. Horibs walk erect and are about the size of a human, and typically have green or brown scales (but don’t let that stop you from experimenting, as I did!). Personally, I use the Wargames Atlantic Lizardmen, which conveniently come with a variety of rifles, binoculars particularly suited to their physiognomy, and even gas masks and assault rifles reminscent of a StG44 or AK-47.

The Gilaks are just normal humans, if, perhaps, a bit buffer and stupider looking. I haven’t made any myself, but if you can get some cavemen to hold Model 1898 Mausers in addition to clubs and spears, you are golden.

on the tabletop

The rules you play will determine how you want to adapt the special qualities of the German auxiliaries. To further aid you, here’s how I handle them in my Bolt Action/Konflikt ’47 games.

Both kinds of Pellucidarian auxiliaries gain the Wilderness Experts advantage.

Wilderness Experts: Innate navigation sense and familiarity with the environment means these troops do not suffer movement penalties or morale restrictions when traversing the dense Pellucidarian forests.

In addition, the Horib Scouts will have the Tough Fighters special rule; some may even have Fanatic. Although the Horibs are about the size of a human, their tails make it difficult for them to fit in standard vehicles, thus they are also considered Large Infantry.

The more unreliable Gilak auxiliaries, however, suffer from the Shirkers trait.

There are a wide variety of Pellucidarian auxiliary formations. Here are the most common.

Horib Scout Squad
Composition: 1 feldwebel and 5-11 additional braves
Weapons: Rifles, close combat weapons
Options: The feldwebel may be given an SMG and up to 2 braves may be given Assault Rifles. Scouts are often accompanied by 1-2 warbeasts, such as the Sheshtrag (Carnotaurus), Jaloks (Hyaenodonts), or Stokor (Andrewsarchus). Rules for these creatures will be covered in a future post.

Horib Cavalry Squadron
Composition: 1 feldwebel and 2-4 additional braves mounted on Gorobors
Weapons: Rifles, close combat weapons
Options: All units may be upgraded with SMGs
Additional Special Rules: Cavalry, Horror, Tough

Gilak Raiding Party
Composition: 1 chief and 10-24 warriors
Weapons: Rifles, close combat weapons
Options: The chief and up to 4 warriors may be given SMGs.