7th Gardenia Fleet

Organization

Having previously been a frontier defense fleet, the 7th Gardenia is organized into a number of specialized task forces.

With the conflict going hot over the Red/Blue Line, many of these groupings have been reorganized temporarily.

Task Force 70

TF 70 is the forward operations component of the Gardenia Fleet, consisting primarily of light picket ships and rugged survey vessels capable of extended operations in deep space.

The Task Force's squadrons are themed after plants of the genus taraxacum.

Task Force 71

TF 71 is a mainline combat unit that was originally formed for tradeship and colony escort duties. Their command and crew are hardened by experience and especially vigilant against flanking attacks and dragoon assaults. In the current wartime conditions they have largely served as a vanguard unit for the 7th Fleet.

The Task Force's squadrons are named after plants of the genus nymphaea and nelumbo.

Task Force 72

Originally an escort for logistics, Task Force 72 currently serves primarily as a medium screening unit for the 7th Fleet's main combatants, consisting mostly of frigates, light cruisers and ships fast enough to outrun anything they can't outfight.

The Task Force's squadrons are named after plants of the genus hydrangea.

Task Force 73

Task Force 73 is the command unit of the fleet and is comprised of four squadrons comprising a command squadron with the 7th's Flagship, two heavy combatants consisting primarily of battleships and a screening unit.

The names of TF 73's squadrons are derived from the names of ancient rose cultivars.

Task Force 74

Task Force 74 previously served as the logistics support unit in the 7th Fleet, but its assets were reassigned and the slot was repurposed for a mainline combat unit. Pieced together from a number of squadrons reassigned from the over-strength 8th Fleet along with the 94th's escort, it consist of heavy combatants and light escorts.

The names of the 94th's squadrons previously referred to prickly plants but now takes names from various species of inedible weeds.

Task Force 75

Task Force 75 is the 7th Fleet's primary pursuit unit, specializing in tracking and assaulting mobile forces such as pirates and halting the activities of illegal colonists in Jardin Republic territory. Their role in combat is as a fast attack units of dragons in the Jardini tradition, consisting of a core of fast-attack cruisers using special support ships, backed by fast battleships that sacrifice durability for maneuver and long-range attack.

Task Force 75's squadrons use the names of insects helpful to agriculture.

Task Force 76

Task Force is a reserve unit that acts as the rear guard in large fleet engagements and specializes in making use of battlefield conditions to prolong retreats. Their primary in-fleet function is training new transferees and screening for new recruits into the 7th's officer club, so the crew in TF 76 are among the least experienced. Their first real engagement in years was covering a convoy of Phoenix Republicans fleeing into Jardini space while under attack by a unit of Phoenix dragoons.

The naming schema of Task Force 76's squadrons is based on species of the genus prunus, as cherry blossoms are a popular symbol of academia and youth even in Jardin.

Task Force 77

Task Force 77 is an auxiliary taskforce that specializes in sieges and boarding operations. The marine forces aboard its squadrons experienced some of the most severe fighting out of the 7th Fleet, flying just behind the tip of the spear in the taking of several crucial Phoenix orbital facilities and the star fortress occupying a border world.

Their naming scheme of the 77th's squadrons draws from parasitic plants.