Imperial Marines

I like Steve Charlton's Ideas on Imperial Marine/Army/Navy
organization, and want to fill it out a bit.

I've had it in mind (and still am planning to) design some of the
major components of a Marine Expeditionary Division of the
Imperium.  Here's some design considerations;

Everything this division needs must be optimised to take up the
least amount of volume.  MBTs and APC with energy weapon armament,
a focus on energy-based support weapons would be the beginning to
prevent a huge logistical need for shells/bullets.  Infantry weapons
would be similarly designed.  Actually I would probably equip with
4mm Gauss weapons because of the low signature (compared to energy
wpns) low noise, and since 4mm gauss ammo is relatively easy to
manufacture at any industrial world, and takes up a low amount of
space per round.  (manufacture one jump-2 away-much easier to transport
than some tech-14 ACR explosive or binary propellent ammo).

Actually there is a series of books, "Until Relieved" is one of
them, where a weapon (which I think was a gaus weapon) used wire
on spools as ammo, and had a cutting/straightening tool to seperate
the wire into individual rounds.  Not a bad idea.  (could that have
been one of the series by J. Andrew Keith?  The memory fades when you
hit 27.)

Space transport should be modular.  I envision a "Rodger Young" class
Company Assault Transport which would be deployable alone, in pairs,
or in hordes as a division.  I also thought there would be just a few
"Divisional Assault Transports", Which I want to build as a battle
rider, each rider holding one battalion of either combat or support
function.  This configuration allows planetwide coverage for orbital
fire (one ship would only be able to cover a portion of the planet
with orbital fire) and sensors.  It also reduces in-system vulnerability
(not counting the tender, of course) of the division if there are still
space-bourne defenders (there should not be).

At one point I was thinking of an artillery vehicle with four 5-barrel rotary
mass drivers.  This would allow the equivalent of a platoon of artillery in
one vehicle.  It would also increase vulnerability since one well-fired
missile takes out a platoon of artillery.  The other problem was that the
MDs had to be 100mm (to fire submunitions and Remote Deployed Minefields)
and this created an enormous power requirement.  They do seem possible,
however, and I intend to design them as such.  The advantages of deploying
one vehicle in place of four is still greater than the disadvantages.

Imperial Marines are equipped with Tech 15 hardware whenever practical.
This should save space, make the expeditionary force superior in technology
to the majority of opponents, and prevent the full utilization of any
captured equipment (since the enemy cannot maintain TL15 stuff on TL12 world,
in theory).

The Marines are a combat organization.  Other functions are handled by other
branches whenever practical.  For example, there's a (Marine) combat engineer
battalion attached to the division, but if additional engineers are
needed in a given situation, borrow them from the regular army.  Logistics
is handled by Navy personnel until supplies reach the ground.  I would put
Air Superiority in Navy hands, but Close Air Support (when used) with
Marine pilots.  Likewise, there should be a Marine officer directing
orbital Fire Support (although the gunners are obviously Navy).

Ok, Now my questions.  How many combat battalions in an Imp. Marine
Division?  How many companies per battalion?  Platoons per company?
Troops per platoon?  Are companies combined arms? or are platoons?
Is artillery organic to the Battalion? or the company?

Translation of above;  What does the Table of Organization and Equipment
look like for a Marine Division?  I've made some suggestions above, but am
not familiar enough with military organization to know "what works"
and what doesn't.  What "monkey wrench" would get thrown into Marine
organization within the imperium?  Perhaps a few incompetent Noble
commanders?

Remeber that Marines are probably often deployed as companies, and should have
many of the divisional services provided at lower organizational levels
(A combat engineer squad?  I guess we could get carried away.)

Pete