Greetings soldier!
Now that you're operating as a "subcontractor" for the IMCN, it's about time to address some of the rules that you'll be expected to follow - specifically ethical protocols. Though you don't yet have full member status in the IMCN, all freelancers in the employ of Ishpeming or Northern Gun are still required to adhere to certain mission conventions and battlefield conduct. The IMCN holds all subcontractors to the same standards as full members. If you've already signed a contract with us, then these rules and conditions should already be known to you. Still, they bear some repeating and further discussion.
Now that you're operating as a "subcontractor" for the IMCN, it's about time to address some of the rules that you'll be expected to follow - specifically ethical protocols. Though you don't yet have full member status in the IMCN, all freelancers in the employ of Ishpeming or Northern Gun are still required to adhere to certain mission conventions and battlefield conduct. The IMCN holds all subcontractors to the same standards as full members. If you've already signed a contract with us, then these rules and conditions should already be known to you. Still, they bear some repeating and further discussion.
The average person in North America has a largely unrealistic view of professional freelance soldiering. Civilians traditionally imagine mercenaries in one of two lights, both of which are exaggerated and distorted.
The first view is a painfully quaint and romanticized one: mercs are seen as freewheeling cowboys who've completely shirked social constraints in favor of the lure of freedom, adventure, and profit motive. Apparently, we're an intriguing mix of self-interest and nobility, like glamorized caricatures from a Perez Studios holo-flick. And while this description perhaps fits some mercenaries, it certainly doesn't describe us all. The truth is that there's very little that's glamorous about mercenary work, and anyone whose been soldiering for some time knows this.
The second view is at the other end of the spectrum. Mercenaries are perceived as lowlifes and cutthroats who'll take any contract and do anything in the name of the Almighty Credit. We're bloodthirsty opportunists who lack true military discipline or any concept of honor, loyalty, and duty - essentially bandits with some military training. Unfortunately, this view is, by far, the most prevalent one. And while most of us probably know at least one merc more blackhearted than a Splugorth, this characterization, again, doesn't do the rest of us justice. The typical mercenary's lack of allegiance to a political power, as well as our high degree of combat pragmatism (sometimes misinterpreted as craven or dishonorable behavior), is what has earned mercenaries the monicker "dogs of war." Most people and governments, at least in North America, deem soldiers-of-fortune to be untrustworthy and expendable. Though they'll purchase our services, doing so is considered a distasteful and necessary evil, and we're often treated like nothing more than cannon fodder or glorified criminals.
Such disdain is best exemplified by a common joke:
Q: "What do you call an out-of-work mercenary?"
A: "A pirate."
The sad truth is that, in the eyes of most people, the only difference between a mercenary and a pirate is money. Not how much money, mind you, but how he makes it. If you beat someone up and steal his credits, you're a pirate. On the other hand, if you get hired to beat someone up and steal his credits, then you're a mercenary. We mercs call this "the thin, thin line," and it's a nearly imperceptible line that you will be forced to walk every day while serving the IMCN. In an effort to combat such stigma, Ishpeming and Northern Gun expect only the utmost professionalism from those in their employ. Regardless of how others view the mercenary profession, the IMCN holds all of its members and subcontractors to very high standards of conduct. Members and subcontractors who violate our policies may incur a range of penalties depending on the severity of the infraction, from fines and temporary suspension, to membership termination, incarceration, or worse.
Please note that when we use the term "mercenary," we're not just referring to soldiers-for-hire. The IMCN contracts and employs many individuals who have little to no military experience, such as body fixers, cyber-docs, operators, technicians, wilderness scouts, salvage experts, scientists, historians, engineers, pilots, psychics, supernatural experts, and much more. Just as a traditional military requires specialists and support personnel to function, so does the IMCN. There are a number of groups that are part of the Network that are not specifically combat units: construction crews, merchant marine fleets, think tanks, and salvage crews (such as Golden Age Salvage), just to give a few examples. Consequently, use of the word "mercenary" in IMCN jargon is more of a catch-all for any person or group that sells valuable services, whether directly related to combat or not. Point is, regardless of what exactly you do for the IMCN, everyone is beholden to the same rules.
Consider the following stipulations to be as much a matter of practicality as conscience. Mercenaries who breach a contract, betray a client, or kill innocent civilians suffer irreparable damage to their reputation. The grapevine of arms dealers, Black Marketeers, and soldiers-of-fortune in the Domain of Man gossip energetically about mercenary activities, and word of misconduct gets around. The more colorful the story, the quicker it travels. It only takes a couple of contract violations or war crimes to get permanently blackballed by potential clients. Since each IMCN employee represents the IMCN, any damage to his or her reputation is, in turn, damage to the IMCN's reputation as a whole. This makes Ishpeming look bad and cuts into Northern Gun's corporate profit margin. Neither is a good thing for your health.
The following is a brief summary of important IMCN guidelines for conduct. For further information, please look to your Ishpeming Military Contract Network Handbook. For the purposes of this posting, the designation "IMCN employee" applies to both full members and subcontractors.
Client & Contract Conduct
Operational Conduct
Courts-Martial
Court-martial-able offenses include, but are not limited to, the following:
One more thing to discuss. Those of you who operate in mercenary or Black Market circles may have heard mention of the "Golden Rule." The rule has a number of versions, but, in the context of the mercenary profession, it usually goes something like this: "If you want a mercenary to stop hunting you, pay him double what the original client offered. If you want him to turn around and go after the original client, make it quadruple." A similar rule exists in the salvage industry about making a higher offer so that the salvage crew gives its spoils to you instead of the original client.
We want to make it very clear that this kind of opportunistic contract-breaking is unacceptable from IMCN members and subcontractors. While such two-timing behavior might be the norm for some of the independent merc washouts on the fringes of the Domain of Man, it is in no way how the professionals of the IMCN do business. Unless the client commits his own breach of contract, IMCN mercenaries are expected to always honor their contract obligations and carry out their missions to the fullest. There is a reason that this topic gets addressed in the first line of our Code of Conduct.
The first view is a painfully quaint and romanticized one: mercs are seen as freewheeling cowboys who've completely shirked social constraints in favor of the lure of freedom, adventure, and profit motive. Apparently, we're an intriguing mix of self-interest and nobility, like glamorized caricatures from a Perez Studios holo-flick. And while this description perhaps fits some mercenaries, it certainly doesn't describe us all. The truth is that there's very little that's glamorous about mercenary work, and anyone whose been soldiering for some time knows this.
The second view is at the other end of the spectrum. Mercenaries are perceived as lowlifes and cutthroats who'll take any contract and do anything in the name of the Almighty Credit. We're bloodthirsty opportunists who lack true military discipline or any concept of honor, loyalty, and duty - essentially bandits with some military training. Unfortunately, this view is, by far, the most prevalent one. And while most of us probably know at least one merc more blackhearted than a Splugorth, this characterization, again, doesn't do the rest of us justice. The typical mercenary's lack of allegiance to a political power, as well as our high degree of combat pragmatism (sometimes misinterpreted as craven or dishonorable behavior), is what has earned mercenaries the monicker "dogs of war." Most people and governments, at least in North America, deem soldiers-of-fortune to be untrustworthy and expendable. Though they'll purchase our services, doing so is considered a distasteful and necessary evil, and we're often treated like nothing more than cannon fodder or glorified criminals.
Such disdain is best exemplified by a common joke:
Q: "What do you call an out-of-work mercenary?"
A: "A pirate."
The sad truth is that, in the eyes of most people, the only difference between a mercenary and a pirate is money. Not how much money, mind you, but how he makes it. If you beat someone up and steal his credits, you're a pirate. On the other hand, if you get hired to beat someone up and steal his credits, then you're a mercenary. We mercs call this "the thin, thin line," and it's a nearly imperceptible line that you will be forced to walk every day while serving the IMCN. In an effort to combat such stigma, Ishpeming and Northern Gun expect only the utmost professionalism from those in their employ. Regardless of how others view the mercenary profession, the IMCN holds all of its members and subcontractors to very high standards of conduct. Members and subcontractors who violate our policies may incur a range of penalties depending on the severity of the infraction, from fines and temporary suspension, to membership termination, incarceration, or worse.
Please note that when we use the term "mercenary," we're not just referring to soldiers-for-hire. The IMCN contracts and employs many individuals who have little to no military experience, such as body fixers, cyber-docs, operators, technicians, wilderness scouts, salvage experts, scientists, historians, engineers, pilots, psychics, supernatural experts, and much more. Just as a traditional military requires specialists and support personnel to function, so does the IMCN. There are a number of groups that are part of the Network that are not specifically combat units: construction crews, merchant marine fleets, think tanks, and salvage crews (such as Golden Age Salvage), just to give a few examples. Consequently, use of the word "mercenary" in IMCN jargon is more of a catch-all for any person or group that sells valuable services, whether directly related to combat or not. Point is, regardless of what exactly you do for the IMCN, everyone is beholden to the same rules.
Consider the following stipulations to be as much a matter of practicality as conscience. Mercenaries who breach a contract, betray a client, or kill innocent civilians suffer irreparable damage to their reputation. The grapevine of arms dealers, Black Marketeers, and soldiers-of-fortune in the Domain of Man gossip energetically about mercenary activities, and word of misconduct gets around. The more colorful the story, the quicker it travels. It only takes a couple of contract violations or war crimes to get permanently blackballed by potential clients. Since each IMCN employee represents the IMCN, any damage to his or her reputation is, in turn, damage to the IMCN's reputation as a whole. This makes Ishpeming look bad and cuts into Northern Gun's corporate profit margin. Neither is a good thing for your health.
The following is a brief summary of important IMCN guidelines for conduct. For further information, please look to your Ishpeming Military Contract Network Handbook. For the purposes of this posting, the designation "IMCN employee" applies to both full members and subcontractors.
Client & Contract Conduct
- IMCN employees must fulfill the terms of their contracts, even in the face of higher bids from the client's enemies.
- All information provided by the client to the IMCN employee during an offer of employment must be held confidential, even if that offer is not accepted. The mercenary may not approach the target of the requested operation in search of a competing bid.
- All confidential information provided by the client must remain so in perpetuity.
- The only situation in which contract violations on the part of an IMCN employee are permissible is if the client has misrepresented himself or the mission. This includes the client lying about who he is or what he wants, or lying about the difficulties of the mission. If sufficient proof can be brought to bear against the client, then employees may immediately terminate the contract without fulfilling the objective (normally a contract breach), with full IMCN backing.
- Likewise, mercenaries who misrepresent themselves, their forces, their gear, or their capabilities, in order to secure a contract with a certain client are in violation of IMCN policies. Such practices are treated as serious acts of fraud.
Operational Conduct
- Operational targets may not include non-combatants. The designation "non-combatant" refers to civilians who do NOT pose a direct and meaningful threat to the employee, and who are NOT willfully working with or for the enemy.
- Operational targets may also not include other IMCN employees, as well as the citizens or holdings of Ishpeming, Northern gun, or any of their allies.
- IMCN employees may never surrender of their own free will, unless in command. Those in command may never surrender those under their command while they still have the means to resist.
- Starting a conflict with a person, group, or foreign power unrelated to the mission, whether in pursuit of the mission objectives or not, is a severe violation of IMCN ethics. Not only is it bad for business, but it's also incredibly dangerous. A common example of why this policy exists is the Ridley Ridge Regulators, a mercenary company that foolishly thought it could deceive a Splugorth raiding party into attacking their operational target (thus, doing the mercs' work for them). For whatever reason, the ploy was ineffective, and all of the members of the Ridley Ridge Regulators ended up either dead or in hiding. Be warned.
Courts-Martial
- Any IMCN employee , if accused of conduct unbecoming a professional, shall face court-martial. Convictions shall be punished as the court-martial decides.
- Sentences for non-capitol offenses may include fines, revocation of member privileges, membership suspension, temporary cap on contracts, temporary wage garnishment, and/or even short-term incarceration. Capitol offenses may result in membership termination, long-term incarceration, exile from Ishpeming/Northern Gun territory, or the death penalty.
- In regards to court-martialing and disciplining subordinates, commanding officers should refrain from setting the precedent of involving local law enforcement. This includes wandering lawmen such as Cyber-Knights and Justice Rangers. The IMCN prefers to handle its matter internally. Even if the accused's alleged offense took place in, or was against the persons or property of, an established legal jurisdiction, commanding officers are expected to always ensure that the accused is only prosecuted by his own. If local law enforcement insists on involvement, refer them to Northern Gun's Corporate Public Relations Department. In the case of Ishpeming's allies, such as the Manistique Imperium and the Coalition States, such matters must be resolved more delicately (commanding officers should refer to article 30, sections 8-22 of the Ishpeming Military Contract Network Handbook).
- Accused IMCN employees are typically remanded to Ishpeming for courts-martial. However, if this is not possible at the time, commanding officers may elect to hold a "drumhead" trial in the field.
- A drumhead follows all the usual procedures for a court-martial, but circumstances "in the field" may limit the the permissible time frame for proceedings. Because of time limits, the accused's right of procedural due process may be temporarily waived in regard to the affordment of reasonable time for trial preparation. Probable cause hearings and pre-trial proceedings may be skipped, if expedient to do so. The accused may be given as little as 6 hours to prepare. This is all at the behest of the judges.
- The accused has the right to hire counsel and request witnesses. The accused also has the right to know what he's being accused of, and who his accuser(s) is.
- The accused will be brought before a tribunal of judges composed of the three highest ranking IMCN employees available. Any IMCN employee whose involvement would pose a "conflict of interests" or whose judgment may prove to be "biased" (for or against the accused) is not eligible to serve as a judge in that particular court-martial.
- A majority vote in the tribunal determines the outcome of the court-martial. Either the court-martial ends in a conviction, or the charges are dismissed or reduced. Capitol offenses may result in on-site execution by firing squad.
Court-martial-able offenses include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Disobeying a direct (and lawful) order from a commanding officer.
- Knowingly lying to a commanding officer (including lying by omission), or misrepresenting oneself or a situation to a commanding officer. Especially if said situation may potentially affect the safety of fellow IMCN employees or the integrity of the mission.
- Misuse of Northern Gun equipment, which includes the illegal theft, sale, distribution, damage, or destruction of Northern Gun armaments and other goods. This also includes the use of Northern Gun-owned equipment outside of mission parameters or for personal gain.
- Reckless behavior or dereliction of duty, particularly if such behavior/dereliction results in the injury and/or death(s) of non-combatants or fellow IMCN employees. This is a wide category, but includes any of the following: falling asleep on duty, piloting a vehicle or taking part in combat operations while under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol, extreme negligence, abandoning one's post without legitimate reason, friendly fire, self-harm in order to avoid combat or mission obligations, accidental leaking of sensitive information, etc.
- Any act of physical, sexual, or psychological abuse, especially against a non-combatant. Note that "enhanced interrogation techniques," as used on enemy combatants and prisoners of war, do not fall into this category.
- Consortion or involvement with dangerous supernatural forces, unless required for one's survival or for the mission. This includes demons, demon worshippers, vampires, dark gods, cultists, evil spirits, and practitioners of the Dark Arts.
One more thing to discuss. Those of you who operate in mercenary or Black Market circles may have heard mention of the "Golden Rule." The rule has a number of versions, but, in the context of the mercenary profession, it usually goes something like this: "If you want a mercenary to stop hunting you, pay him double what the original client offered. If you want him to turn around and go after the original client, make it quadruple." A similar rule exists in the salvage industry about making a higher offer so that the salvage crew gives its spoils to you instead of the original client.
We want to make it very clear that this kind of opportunistic contract-breaking is unacceptable from IMCN members and subcontractors. While such two-timing behavior might be the norm for some of the independent merc washouts on the fringes of the Domain of Man, it is in no way how the professionals of the IMCN do business. Unless the client commits his own breach of contract, IMCN mercenaries are expected to always honor their contract obligations and carry out their missions to the fullest. There is a reason that this topic gets addressed in the first line of our Code of Conduct.