The Brotherhood of Steel - How I Would Change It

This little post is something I worked on for a few lunch breaks back in 2021: my ideal Brotherhood of Steel, if I had a hand in it. I don't think it is done, hell I haven't even proofread this thing before putting it here, but it's an interesting bit of creative writing in my opinion and I want people to see it. Have fun :)

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Infrastructure:

• Secure the massive network of highway systems crisscrossing America. Secure these roads wherever possible, fortify them, rebuild them if necessary, and utilize these roads to quickly transport supplies, troops, and robots across the country.
• Capture port cities and employ a Brotherhood naval force, ensuring control of the sea as to add onto the vertibird/airship aerial superiority and the Brotherhood ground forces. From there, form trade routes between these settlements and get naval supply lines moving.
• Conquer land-based settlements as a wave, moving from points of great Brotherhood control towards areas of zero Brotherhood oversight in a methodical, slower way. This will prevent a situation like the trip from D.C. to Boston, where taking out the Brotherhood in Boston makes the entire warpath an utter failure.

Internal Structure:

The Brotherhood contains multiple divisions, each of which play specific parts in the organization. These divisions each function somewhat autonomously, though they all rely on the Council That Defines.

        The Council That Defines

• Every year, each member of the Brotherhood casts an anonymous vote to elect members to a small council in California made up of the different chapters. This Council That Defines then serves as an oversight committee of sorts for the Brotherhood, empowered to designate the rules and regulations of the Brotherhood, as well as to amend or update the Codex if need be.
• The Council also has the sole responsibility of choosing the High Elder, who watches over the entire order rather than one branch. The High Elder handles political decisions in relation to other factions and societies, serving as the face of the Brotherhood to the outside world.
• The Circle of Steel serves as the hardliner internal affairs group of the Brotherhood - the Circle conducts investigations within the Brotherhood, operating under the direct oversight and supervision of the Council That Defines. The Circle of Steel is led by the Inquisitor.
• The Inquisitor is chosen by the Circle itself - a vote is cast, and whoever has the most votes is elected to be the Inquisitor. Inquisitors have a limited term of two years, which can be extended for another two years if ¾ of the Circle votes in favor.
• The Circle's membership is re-evaluated annually, ensuring that new blood is introduced on a regular basis.
• The Expeditionary Forces serve as the scout groups for the Brotherhood, keeping an eye on territory outside of Brotherhood control in order to chart the best course of action when it comes to expansion or conflict. The Expeditionary Forces are led by the Master Ranger.
• The Master Ranger is chosen every two years in a deadly competition. Members of the Forces who choose to compete are put on a vertibird, blindfolded, dropped in a hostile, distant environment with minimal supplies, and their only objective is to find their way back. Anyone who survives is good enough to be a Master Ranger; if multiple people make it back, those individuals work jointly as Master Rangers.
• The Expeditionary Forces are re-evaluated annually, ensuring that new blood is introduced on a regular basis.
• The Chartered Chapters are exactly that: individual chapters of the Brotherhood over which an Elder presides with a Head Paladin, a Head Scribe and a Head Lancer. The Chapters as a whole are led by the High Elder.
• Chapter Elders have a limited term of three years, which can be extended for a second term of three years if ¾ of the population of that chapter vote to keep the current Elder in office.
• High Elders have limited terms as well, but limited to five years rather than three, with the possibility of a second term relying on an order-wide vote taking place over the course of multiple months. For a High Elder to be provided a second term, the order-wide vote must be in their favor by ¾ of the entire Brotherhood’s membership.

The organizational structure of the Brotherhood as a whole gets much greater expansion and much more detailed descriptions of each group’s role.

• All Brotherhood members over the age of 18 upon joining begin as Knights. All Brotherhood members below the age of 18 upon joining begin as Squires, then are promoted to Knights after they reach the age of 18 (if they receive a sponsorship from a member with the rank of senior knight or greater). The system of sponsorship within the Brotherhood is the main way for a Knight to become more than that.
• Knight is the introductory rank within the Brotherhood, and is meant to provide recruits with the basic knowledge they’ll need for advancement in any of the three branches.

After Knight comes a whole litany of ranks, depending on which branch the member has chosen to follow.

• Scribes:
• The Orders
• A Scribe of the Quill is tasked with preserving history, whether that be through ancient texts or simple logistics reports. These are, essentially, the people who handle accounting and bookkeeping.
• A Scribe of the Sword is tasked with research into the Brotherhood’s offensive capabilities, including knowledge on how to repair said capabilities.
• A Scribe of the Shield is tasked with research into different avenues of defense for the Brotherhood, including knowledge on how to maintain defensive structures (including armor).
• A Scribe of the Seed is tasked with the research and study of things like agriculture, sustainable energy, architecture, clean water, radiation cures and much more.
• Scribes specialize in one of the four disciplines, generally working towards the advancement of that field.
• Senior Scribes have an expert understanding of their specific discipline, being the go-to opinion for more complex situations therein. They tend to focus on more advanced projects, receiving help from regular Scribes along the way.
• Head Scribes have a general grasp of all four disciplines, but a very strong grasp of how they connect and interact with the rest of the Brotherhood. These can be chosen from any of the Orders, and oversee them equally.

• Paladins:
• Paladins
• Star Paladins
• Head Paladins
• Lancers:
• Lancers
• Lancer Captains
• Head Lancers

Life of a Brotherhood Member:

• Let's assume this person is born into the Brotherhood. They spend much of their early life as a Squire within one of the Chartered Chapters, then upon reaching age 18 and receiving support from a ranked individual, this person will become a Knight.
• The Knight will train in the basics of all three "classes" - that being Scribes, Paladins and Lancers - and will gain an understanding of their place in the Chartered Chapters. Upon completion of their Knight training, and sponsorship from a higher-ranked member, they are allowed to advance to either the Scribe, Paladin or Lancer pathways. This individual is then presented with some options as to how they can go forward:
• Stay in the Chartered Chapters, either within their current Chapter or by being relocated to a different one.
• Apply for the Expeditionary Forces, with the goal of exploring the wastes for the Brotherhood.
• If they showed enough of an aptitude for it, they could be chosen by the Council to join the Circle of Steel and investigate issues within the Brotherhood itself.
• With those major decisions made, the individual would stay within their chosen path until removed. If they entered the Forces or the Circle but were rotated out at the annual evaluation, they would simply return to their place in the Chartered Chapters until a time where they'd join another of the divisions through the same application processes listed above.
• Let's say that the individual in question entered the Circle of Steel as a Paladin, spent two years there before being rotated out, then returned to the Chartered Chapters as a Star Paladin. They would retain this rank in the Chapters, because your "class" and your rank within it stays with you throughout the entirety of the Brotherhood. Becoming a Head Lancer while in the Expeditionary Forces means you're a Head Lancer when you return to the Chapters; if there is another Head Lancer in your home Chapter, you and your family would simply be relocated to a Chapter which lacked one. If you couldn't relocate, then you'd be demoted to a Lancer Captain but receive compensation for your losses.
•  Anyone above the rank of Knight (across all divisions) can be chosen to serve on the Council That Defines. Anyone above the rank of Knight within the Chartered Chapters can be chosen to serve as an Elder, and any Elder can be chosen to serve as High Elder. Anyone in the Circle of Steel can be chosen to serve as an Inquisitor, and anyone in the Expeditionary Forces can potentially win the contest and become the Master Ranger. The only real barrier is moving on from the rank of Knight.