In a lot of science fiction stories, and Reddit posts, people talk about super soldiers. This mostly takes the form of humans genetically engineered for one purpose (Larry Niven’s Saurons) or raised from the cradle to be so, (eg. Imperial Stormtroopers) or turned into cyborgs (Timothy Zahn’s Cobras). Combinations of the above show up as well, of course.
Having spent more than half of my life in uniform, I have a basis in experience to speak from on this subject. Basically, none of the above are necessary.
The classical example is Robert Heinlein’s “Starship Troopers”. There is a strong echo here of Ancient Greece, where a free citizen had the obligation to put on his armour and take his place in the phalanx. RAH ran with this, postulating a society where citizenship was not a given, but earned through military service.
This concept is very controversial, and I’m not getting into that debate here. I’m concerned with the military background, which is very well worked out, as is to be expected of the Grand Master.
Early in the book, Johnnie Rico is down on the battlefield, looking for a target for his two nuclear weapons, having had it pounded into him that said targets had to be worthwhile.
He shoots and scoots, and the building blows up right after he does so. He coolly observes that it’s a good decision on the part of the enemy. Blowing up one of their own buildings for a shot at killing an MI trooper is a good exchange. Johnnie Rico is a private in the rear rank.
We may fairly say that Heinlein’s Mobile Infantry were super soldiers. Under the heavy armour and heavier weapons there is a hairy, sweaty and quite unmodified human being. No cyborgs need apply.
So, then, what does it take to make a super soldier? Well, first of all, money is the sinew of war. However you approach the problem, the military in question is going to need a serious budget, as in a noticeable chunk out of the GDP of the nation fielding it. Size of the force will depend heavily on the size of that GDP.
Quality vs. quantity is a very old military argument. Since we are talking about super soldiers here, we are already far over on the side of quality. A couple of present day examples will give you an idea of the scale of the investment needed.
The flyaway cost of an F-35 fighter jet is approximately 80 million US dollars a copy. Then there is the decidedly non-trivial cost of maintenance, support, and weapons. An AMRAAM air-to-air missile, for example, costs about US $300,000. All of this money and high technology is entrusted to one person, the pilot. He is, by the way, paid a pittance compared to the cost of his aircraft.
Leopard II Main Battle Tanks (MBT) come in at about 5.5 million US, plus maintenance and support. The pilot of a fighter will almost certainly be a commissioned officer. The commander of such a tank may well be a Sergeant. Both will need a high level of training to make best use of their mount.
The recipe for a super soldier begins to come together. Money is the beginning, and that doesn’t just happen. There needs to be a real and serious perceived threat, sustained over a long period. The government involved needs to opt for quality over quantity, which they may do for any number of good reasons, ranging from the humanitarian to the coldly practical.
Selection and training march in step, and they have a great effect on military capability. Consider two riflemen. One is a half-literate conscript issued a cheap rugged weapon. His leaders are less concerned with ensuring he can use it well than with making sure he can’t use it on them. The other is a graduate of the Canadian Army’s Sniper Training program, one of whose graduates made a one shot kill at 2800 metres. Compared to the conscript, the sniper qualifies pretty well as a super soldier. Much the same for the Special Forces units fielded by most major, and quite a few not so major, nations.
Patriotism and motivation add up to the quiet virtue of reliability. A military member who will do a difficult dangerous job well because he was ordered to is a far greater asset than one who has to be watched every minute lest he desert and/or get roaring drunk.
The idea that a military member is just a mobile weapon system doesn’t fly, either. Wars and conflicts are one unending parade of the unexpected, unforeseen and unforseeable problems, of which the enemy is only one. Finding solutions to those problems on the spot makes a lot of difference as to whether the mission succeeds or not. Elite units have a lot of adaptable generalists.
Whatever the era and technical background, these factors can produce a very superior and effective military force which can be disproportionately effective in a conflict. There are tons of battles and wars to draw from, free for the taking.
Now, if you really want to write about an army of mutant cyborgs, go for it. It’s your story to tell as you want to tell it. If you want the veterans in your audience to not throw it at the wall, do your research and pay attention to these guidelines.
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