Stroggos under the assault of the SMC/TCM second wave
Prototype Space Marine combat armour
The Space Marine Corps(SMC) aka TCM in Quake 2) not to be confused with the Global Defence Force (GDF) which operates on Earth, is the fictional branch of Earth's combined military that acts as an expeditionary force in the counter-invasions of Stroggos in retaliation for the Strogg attack on Earth. Comprised of exceptionally brave soldiers, the SMC is thrown into the bloodiest battles humanity has known and is ready to take massive casualties in often near-suicidal operations to defend the Earth.
Presumably its origins lie in the Global Defence Force or GDF, the main body of Earth's defending armies that repelled the Strogg invasion. However, the SMC is much better equipped, with planetary assault ships and drop pods used to invade the Strogg homeworld. It is unclear how the TCM was formed but it may have been created as a response to the Strogg invasion, and its assault ships and much of its weapons may have been developed using captured Strogg technology from the invasion.
Technological level
The SMC possesses high technology enough to go toe-to-toe with the Strogg military on the aliens' own soil. This is coupled with elite training to make the marines exceptionally effective against the Strogg. The main method of maine deployment is via drop pods (as shown in Quake 2), though this isn't always safe, with the SMC being reputed to negligently drop their soldiers in the wrong zones, for example deep in Strogg territory, which has taken many lives.
Notable marines or ex-marines
- Bitterman
- Joker
- Johann Strauss
- Matthew Kane
- Scott Voss (KIA)
- Bidwell
- Morris
- Cortez
- Nikolai "Sledge"
See also
Shortage of manpower demanded women also be deployed